Foreign Nationals in North Rhine-Westphalia by Citizenship 2025
Total foreign nationals: 3,265,705
By continent
| Europe | 2,210,470 | 67.7% |
| Asia | 764,620 | 23.4% |
| Africa | 210,885 | 6.5% |
| Americas | 50,935 | 1.6% |
| Australia and Oceania | 2,565 | 0.1% |
| Stateless, unclear and British Overseas Territories | 26,225 | 0.8% |
By citizenship
| Türkiye | 483,035 | 14.8% |
| Ukraine | 288,310 | 8.8% |
| Syria | 280,650 | 8.6% |
| Poland | 211,865 | 6.5% |
| Romania | 170,100 | 5.2% |
| Italy | 136,990 | 4.2% |
| Bulgaria | 103,620 | 3.2% |
| Greece | 94,465 | 2.9% |
| Iraq | 87,800 | 2.7% |
| Afghanistan | 75,265 | 2.3% |
| Kosovo | 72,655 | 2.2% |
| Serbia | 69,000 | 2.1% |
| Netherlands | 68,055 | 2.1% |
| Spain | 60,475 | 1.9% |
| Croatia | 54,185 | 1.7% |
| Russia | 54,065 | 1.7% |
| India | 50,105 | 1.5% |
| North Macedonia | 47,730 | 1.5% |
| Morocco | 47,590 | 1.5% |
| Bosnia & Herzegovina | 45,680 | 1.4% |
| Iran | 44,310 | 1.4% |
| China | 39,545 | 1.2% |
| Portugal | 37,060 | 1.1% |
| Albania | 35,015 | 1.1% |
| Nigeria | 26,735 | 0.8% |
| Hungary | 21,940 | 0.7% |
| Austria | 20,630 | 0.6% |
| France | 20,400 | 0.6% |
| Unclear or not stated | 18,930 | 0.6% |
| Eritrea | 16,330 | 0.5% |
| Pakistan | 16,185 | 0.5% |
| United Kingdom | 16,140 | 0.5% |
| Vietnam | 16,120 | 0.5% |
| Lebanon | 15,850 | 0.5% |
| Ghana | 15,120 | 0.5% |
| Tunisia | 14,810 | 0.5% |
| Guinea | 14,270 | 0.4% |
| United States | 13,630 | 0.4% |
| Azerbaijan | 12,930 | 0.4% |
| Belgium | 12,840 | 0.4% |
| Somalia | 12,350 | 0.4% |
| Sri Lanka | 12,300 | 0.4% |
| Japan | 12,135 | 0.4% |
| Egypt | 11,575 | 0.4% |
| Lithuania | 11,030 | 0.3% |
| Kazakhstan | 10,970 | 0.3% |
| Thailand | 10,610 | 0.3% |
| Brazil | 10,455 | 0.3% |
| Bangladesh | 9,210 | 0.3% |
| Latvia | 8,960 | 0.3% |
| Armenia | 8,930 | 0.3% |
| Philippines | 8,900 | 0.3% |
| Cameroon | 7,960 | 0.2% |
| Georgia | 7,680 | 0.2% |
| South Korea | 7,515 | 0.2% |
| Montenegro | 7,435 | 0.2% |
| Stateless | 7,175 | 0.2% |
| Sweden | 6,895 | 0.2% |
| Moldova | 6,830 | 0.2% |
| Slovakia | 6,450 | 0.2% |
| Algeria | 5,985 | 0.2% |
| Tajikistan | 5,895 | 0.2% |
| Indonesia | 5,330 | 0.2% |
| Czechia | 5,200 | 0.2% |
| Congo - Kinshasa | 5,145 | 0.2% |
| Switzerland | 5,035 | 0.2% |
| Belarus | 4,885 | 0.1% |
| Jordan | 4,750 | 0.1% |
| Colombia | 4,590 | 0.1% |
| Angola | 4,250 | 0.1% |
| Slovenia | 4,030 | 0.1% |
| Mexico | 3,835 | 0.1% |
| Libya | 3,505 | 0.1% |
| Canada | 3,210 | 0.1% |
| Ireland | 3,120 | 0.1% |
| Kyrgyzstan | 3,090 | 0.1% |
| Uzbekistan | 2,945 | 0.1% |
| Kenya | 2,655 | 0.1% |
| Mongolia | 2,625 | 0.1% |
| Serbia and Montenegro | 2,570 | 0.1% |
| Togo | 2,545 | 0.1% |
| Luxembourg | 2,525 | 0.1% |
| Finland | 2,245 | 0.1% |
| Israel | 2,215 | 0.1% |
| Peru | 2,210 | 0.1% |
| Chile | 2,040 | 0.1% |
| Australia | 2,025 | 0.1% |
| Denmark | 1,985 | 0.1% |
| Ethiopia | 1,935 | 0.1% |
| Taiwan | 1,935 | 0.1% |
| Federal Republic of Yugoslavia | 1,925 | 0.1% |
| Nepal | 1,795 | 0.1% |
| Argentina | 1,645 | 0.1% |
| Gambia | 1,645 | 0.1% |
| Côte d’Ivoire | 1,505 | 0.0% |
| South Africa | 1,465 | 0.0% |
| Malaysia | 1,460 | 0.0% |
| Cuba | 1,455 | 0.0% |
| Ecuador | 1,380 | 0.0% |
| Norway | 1,365 | 0.0% |
| Dominican Republic | 1,335 | 0.0% |
| Venezuela | 1,305 | 0.0% |
| Estonia | 1,235 | 0.0% |
| Madagascar | 1,210 | 0.0% |
| Senegal | 1,145 | 0.0% |
| Sudan | 1,065 | 0.0% |
| Congo - Brazzaville | 1,055 | 0.0% |
| Mali | 995 | 0.0% |
| Yemen | 950 | 0.0% |
| Zimbabwe | 950 | 0.0% |
| Uganda | 950 | 0.0% |
| Cyprus | 930 | 0.0% |
| Palestinian Territories | 885 | 0.0% |
| Honduras | 875 | 0.0% |
| Myanmar (Burma) | 740 | 0.0% |
| Burundi | 660 | 0.0% |
| Serbia (including Kosovo) | 645 | 0.0% |
| Sierra Leone | 615 | 0.0% |
| Tanzania | 605 | 0.0% |
| Benin | 480 | 0.0% |
| Saudi Arabia | 475 | 0.0% |
| New Zealand | 470 | 0.0% |
| Turkmenistan | 470 | 0.0% |
| Rwanda | 430 | 0.0% |
| Bolivia | 425 | 0.0% |
| Qatar | 420 | 0.0% |
| Mauritius | 415 | 0.0% |
| Singapore | 405 | 0.0% |
| Burkina Faso | 380 | 0.0% |
| Namibia | 380 | 0.0% |
| Paraguay | 350 | 0.0% |
| Costa Rica | 345 | 0.0% |
| El Salvador | 320 | 0.0% |
| Jamaica | 305 | 0.0% |
| Soviet Union | 270 | 0.0% |
| Mozambique | 255 | 0.0% |
| Niger | 255 | 0.0% |
| South Sudan | 250 | 0.0% |
| Iceland | 245 | 0.0% |
| United Arab Emirates | 225 | 0.0% |
| Guatemala | 215 | 0.0% |
| Hong Kong | 215 | 0.0% |
| Laos | 200 | 0.0% |
| Mauritania | 195 | 0.0% |
| Guinea-Bissau | 190 | 0.0% |
| Malta | 190 | 0.0% |
| Liberia | 180 | 0.0% |
| Czechoslovakia | 180 | 0.0% |
| Malawi | 175 | 0.0% |
| Nicaragua | 175 | 0.0% |
| Uruguay | 160 | 0.0% |
| Cambodia | 150 | 0.0% |
| Zambia | 150 | 0.0% |
| Kuwait | 145 | 0.0% |
| Dominica | 125 | 0.0% |
| British Overseas Territories | 120 | 0.0% |
| Panama | 115 | 0.0% |
| Trinidad & Tobago | 110 | 0.0% |
| Gabon | 105 | 0.0% |
| Haiti | 105 | 0.0% |
| Bahrain | 100 | 0.0% |
| Oman | 80 | 0.0% |
| Sudan (including South Sudan) | 70 | 0.0% |
| Cape Verde | 65 | 0.0% |
| Chad | 60 | 0.0% |
| Botswana | 55 | 0.0% |
| North Korea | 55 | 0.0% |
| St. Kitts & Nevis | 55 | 0.0% |
| Fiji | 50 | 0.0% |
| Seychelles | 40 | 0.0% |
| Bhutan | 35 | 0.0% |
| Liechtenstein | 35 | 0.0% |
| Equatorial Guinea | 30 | 0.0% |
| Barbados | 30 | 0.0% |
| Djibouti | 30 | 0.0% |
| St. Lucia | 30 | 0.0% |
| Guyana | 25 | 0.0% |
| Lesotho | 25 | 0.0% |
| Central African Republic | 25 | 0.0% |
| St. Vincent & Grenadines | 20 | 0.0% |
| Antigua & Barbuda | 15 | 0.0% |
| Bahamas | 15 | 0.0% |
| Eswatini | 15 | 0.0% |
| Grenada | 15 | 0.0% |
| Maldives | 15 | 0.0% |
| Suriname | 15 | 0.0% |
| Belize | 10 | 0.0% |
| Comoros | 10 | 0.0% |
| Macao | 10 | 0.0% |
| Andorra | 5 | 0.0% |
| Brunei | 5 | 0.0% |
| Kiribati | 5 | 0.0% |
| Papua New Guinea | 5 | 0.0% |
| Solomon Islands | 5 | 0.0% |
| Samoa | 5 | 0.0% |
| San Marino | 5 | 0.0% |
| Tonga | 5 | 0.0% |
| Vanuatu | 5 | 0.0% |
People without German citizenship who were registered in the Central Register of Foreigners on 31 December 2025. Official statistics in Germany do not record race or ethnicity, so this table shows citizenship. People who hold German citizenship alongside another are not included.
Continents follow the grouping used by Destatis; Türkiye, Russia and Cyprus are counted in Europe.
From 2016 onward every figure is rounded to a multiple of 5, so the figures by citizenship may not add up exactly to the total.
People still registered with the citizenship of a state that no longer exists, such as the Soviet Union, are counted under that citizenship.
Datenquelle: Statistisches Bundesamt (Destatis), Genesis-Online, 28.09.2026; Datenlizenz by-2-0; eigene Berechnung/eigene Darstellung
Table 12521-0021 “Ausländer: Bundesländer, Stichtag, Geschlecht/Altersjahre/Familienstand, Ländergruppierungen/Staatsangehörigkeit” (last updated September 21, 2026). Compiled by Rollpie.