Belgium is primarily a country of immigration. Its population has grown from just over 11.000.000 to 11.521.238 in the last decade, both due to immigration and a natural population increase. In 2020, Belgium saw a positive net migration of 41.756 persons, which is almost 25% less than in 2019, but this figure is likely to have been influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic. The top five nationalities among immigrants were Belgians returning to their country of origin, Romanians, French, Dutch and Italians. In 2020, 102.413 people emigrated from Belgium, which remains consistently less than the immigration figure. France, the Netherlands, Italy and Spain are the main destination countries for emigrants, while there is a significant diaspora in the US and Canada too.
The population of Bulgaria, which amounted to 6.838.937 persons in 2021, continues to decline. Over the past three decades, the emigration of Bulgarian citizens overseas has become an important phenomenon, which was further accelerated by Bulgaria’s accession to the EU in 2007, motivating many Bulgarians to leave for other EU countries with better economic opportunities. Bulgaria has one of the largest Diasporas in Europe and the Central Asia region. According to UNDESA, approximately 1.7 million Bulgarians lived abroad in 2020, with the majority staying in the EU. The Bulgarian emigrant population in the EU is estimated at over 800.000 people. Turkey is another major destination country hosting over 300.000 Bulgarians. The remaining 8% live primarily in the USA, Canada and Israel.