Migration to and from Denmark (Discontinued)

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Population and Education, Social Statistics
Dorthe Larsen

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Migration to and from Denmark 2016

The purpose of the statistic is to describe the total immigration to Denmark and emigration from Denmark which have occurred during the period.

Statistical presentation

The statistic describes immigration to Denmark and emigration from Denmark. A newsletter is published when the statistic is ready. The statistic is published each quarter. With the dissemination of the 4th quarter statistics an annual statistic for entire year is also published.

At the same time tables in the Statbank are updated. Immigration and emigration can be broken down by age, sex, municipality, citizenship and country of origin or country of destination.

Statistical processing

CPR (central population register) is the source for information about migration.

Data is processed 30 days after the end of the reference year and published shortly after. For 2013 the statistic was published 11 February 2014.

Relevance

Municipalities, regions, ministries, organizations, research institutions, private enterprises, news media and individuals are among the users.

Accuracy and reliability

Emigration numbers are systematically underestimated. This is due to the fact that many people move abroad without telling the authorities. It is the municipalities who are responsible for the maintenance of the CPR. The correct numbers for emigration is estimated to be about 15-20 percent higher than the published.

A similar problem is not an issue for immigration where the underestimation is about 1-2 percent.

Therefore it is not possible to have a correct measure for net migration simply by subtracting emigration from immigration. That would overestimate net migration.

Persons who take up residence in Denmark without being registered in the CPR are not included among immigrated in the statistic.

Asylum seekers are not included among immigrated in the statistic. It is only when they get a residence permit and are registered in the CPR that they will counted as immigrated.

Timeliness and punctuality

These statistics are published approximately 6 weeks after the end of the reference period. These statistics have always been published as planned.

Comparability

There is a break in the series in 2007, where a new way of calculating the annual immigration and emigration was introduced. The changes are particularly relevant for emigration where the new method results in lower numbers.

Accessibility and clarity

Statistic is published in newsletter and tables in the Statbank.