Increase in non-British nationals living in Scotland

As at June 2020, it was estimated that 409,000 non-British nationals were living in Scotland, representing an increase of 36,000 since June 2019.

• Of all non-British nationals 231,000 (56%) were EU nationals, and 178,000 (44%) were non-EU nationals.
   
• Polish remained the most common non-British nationality with 88,000 people, accounting for 22% of the total non-British population. The second most common non-British nationality was Indian with 22,000 people.
   
• The council areas with the largest proportion of residents with a non-British nationality were Aberdeen City (19%), City of Edinburgh (18%) and Glasgow City (15%).
   

Alan Ferrier, Head of Demographic Statistics said:

“The number of non-British nationals living in Scotland has increased over the latest year, and now represents around 1 in 13 people living in Scotland. This latest change was largely driven by an increase in non-EU nationals.”

The full publication ‘Population by Country of Birth and Nationality for Scotland, July 2019 to June 2020’ can be accessed on this website. This includes information on the number of non-British nationals and non-UK born living in Scotland and each council area. Infographics summarising the key findings are also available for this publication.