The change in the resident population in 2023 was still influenced by an increase in the number of war refugees from Ukraine and a large number of arrivals from the post-Soviet states (Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, etc.) that resulted in positive net international migration (the number of immigrants exceeded that of emigrants by 44.9 thousand).
Natural population change, as in the previous year, remained negative – in 2023, the number of deaths exceeded that of live births by 15.7 thousand. In 2023, the number of live births totalled 20 thousand, which is by 2 thousand (9.3 percent) less than in 2022.
In 2023, 35.7 thousand deaths were recorded, which is by 7.2 thousand (16.7 percent) less than in 2022.
More citizens returned to Lithuania than left it
In 2023, 22 thousand residents emigrated from Lithuania: 12 thousand foreign citizens and 10 thousand citizens of the Republic of Lithuania. Compared to 2022, the number of emigrants increased by 6.7 thousand (44 percent).
The emigration directions of the permanent population of the country remained the same: Ukraine, the United Kingdom, Belarus, Norway and Germany. Foreign citizens mainly emigrated to Ukraine (8 thousand) and Belarus (almost 2 thousand), citizens of the Republic of Lithuania – to the United Kingdom, Norway and Germany.
In 2023, 66.9 thousand people immigrated to Lithuania (20.4 thousand or 23.4 percent less than in 2022), i.e. by 45 thousand more than left the country.
In 2023, 75 percent of all immigrants were foreign citizens, 25 percent – citizens of the Republic of Lithuania. Citizens from Ukraine, Belarus comprised the largest proportion of foreign citizens who immigrated to Lithuania. Most citizens of the Republic of Lithuania returned from the United Kingdom, Norway and Germany.
In 2023, the net international migration of citizens of the Republic of Lithuania was positive: the number of the citizens of the Republic of Lithuania who returned to Lithuania exceeded that of those who left the country by 6 thousand (in 2022, 7.6 thousand more).