Immigration drives Czech population growth, but last year's surge slows

The population of Czechia continued to grow in the first quarter of 2023. Overall, there are 23,091 more people living in the country that at the end of 2022, bringing the total to 10,850,060. International migration continued to drive growth, with 31,333 more people arriving than leaving. Migration was dominated by citizens of Ukraine, especially those with temporary protection.

Due to natural change, with births compared to deaths, the Czech population decreased by 8,242. The number of live births, deaths, and marriages decreased year-on-year, according to the Czech Statistical Office (ČSÚ).

"During the first quarter of this year, a total of 41,315 people immigrated to the Czech Republic from abroad. Compared to the first quarter of 2022, when a migration wave of almost 150,000 people arrived from Ukraine, the number was only a quarter, but the number of immigrants remained higher than in previous years," Michaela Němečková from the ČSÚ’s demographic statistics unit said in a press release.

Three-quarters of the immigrants were citizens of Ukraine, while the second most numerous group, Slovaks, accounted for only 4 percent of the immigrants. The number of emigrants leaving for abroad stood at 9,928 people.

The year-on-year decline in the birth rate, which began in early 2022, continued this year. From January to March, a total of 22,011 babies were born alive, which was 2,666 or 11 percent fewer year-on-year.

In terms of birth order, the number of first-born children decreased relatively the least, by 8 percent, while the number of children in the third or higher order decreased the most, by 18 percent. The share of live births outside marriage reached 49.2 percent.

The number of deaths was 30,253, which was 1,864 fewer than in the first quarter of 2022. Deaths were similar to the years 2019 and 2020; at 46,820, their number was much higher in 2021, due to the pandemic. In calendar months, the highest number of deaths in the first quarter of 2023 occurred in January, with approximately 11,400.

Some 3,536 couples entered into marriage from January to March, about 988 fewer than a year earlier. However, last year's total for the first quarter was boosted by attractive dates in February such as 22/02/2022.  Compared to the same date a year earlier, the population on March 31, 2023, rose by 181,435 people.