Immigrants Comprise Close To 10% Of Iceland’s Population

Immigrants make up 9.6% of Iceland’s population, as of the beginning of this year, and their numbers have only grown by 0.7% between years.

RÚV reports that new data from Statistics Iceland shows that Poles comprise the largest share of all immigrants, at about 38%. Following in a distant second are Lithuanians, at about 5%, followed by Filipinos, at 4.8%

About 66% of first and second generation immigrants live in or near the capital city of Reykjavík. Other parts of the country with an immigrant composition above the national average were Suðurnes, where immigrants comprise 16% of all residents, followed by the Westfjords, with 14%.

An increasing number of these immigrants are also applying for citizenship. 801 immigrants were granted citizenship last year, compared to 595 the year before that. Most of these new citizens were Poles, while Filipinos comprised the second largest share.