The number of Australian residents who were born in Ireland has surpassed 100,000, according to new official statistics, reports RTE.
Figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reveal that as of last June, 103,080 Irish-born individuals were living in Australia. This marks an increase from 94,540 the previous year—an uptick of more than 8,500.
Over the past two decades, that number has nearly doubled, reports RTE.
Since 2004, when there were 55,020 Ireland-born residents in Australia, the figure has jumped by 87%.
There was a particularly sharp rise after the global financial crisis in 2007, peaking at 96,360 in 2013, reports RTE.
In 2022, the number had dropped to 85,660 but rebounded with an increase of nearly 9,000 in 2023.
By comparison, the growth in Northern Ireland-born residents has been much smaller, reports RTE.
In 2024, 25,920 people living in Australia were born in Northern Ireland, just 860 more than the year before.
That total marks a 14.9% increase over the last two decades, reports RTE.
Ireland’s upward trend contrasts sharply with most other EU member states.
Italy’s numbers, for example, declined from nearly 223,000 in 2004 to 156,000 in 2023, reports RTE.
As a result, Italy no longer ranks among Australia’s top ten countries of birth—breaking a trend that dated back to 1901.
In total, Australia’s population stands at 27.2 million, with 8.6 million being foreign-born, reports RTE.
The countries with the largest groups of overseas-born residents include England, India, China, and New Zealand.
According to the ABS, nearly every nation on the globe was represented in Australia’s foreign-born population last year, reports RTE.
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