Austria

Migration and demographic change in Austria

At the beginning of 2026, Austria had a population of 9.22 million. At the end of 2014, before the wave of immigration that followed the war in Syria, the country’s population stood at just 8.5 million.

The total fertility rate in Austria has experienced a noticeable decline over the last decade, falling from 1.44 in 2013 to a new historic low of 1.31 in 2024.

According to the latest statistics, the Austrian population is expected to continue growing, reaching 9.35 million by 2035 and 9.63 million by 2050, driven largely by immigration.

The country experienced major migration shocks following the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine. Since 2015, the share of foreign-born population increased by 38.4% to 2.51 million people (27.8% of the population) in 2024.

At the beginning of 2026, the number of foreign citizens reached 1,890,740, accounting for approximately 20.5% of the total population.

The largest groups of non-EU citizens in Austria are nationals of Turkey, Serbia, Syria, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The migrant background population from non-EU countries totals approximately 1.56 million.

In 2024, 25,400 asylum applications were filed, mainly from Syria, Afghanistan, and Türkiye, while 13,000 people acquired Austrian citizenship.