9.4% of the Basque population made some sort of change of residence during 2006, which in 70.2% of cases was within A.C. of the Basque Country itself, while in the remaining cases the mobility was extra-community. During 2006, 14,458 more people came to the A.C. of the Basque Country than left, meaning an 8.5% increase with regard to 2005, according to Eustat data.

It was the seventh year running for the A.C. of the Basque Country to record a positive migratory balance. By province, Bizkaia, which gained 7,878 people, showed the highest migratory balance in absolute figures, rising by 6% in relation to 2005. Gipuzkoa, which gained 3,340 people, increasing its balance by 16% as regards the previous year. As for Álava, it gained 3,243 people, representing a 7% increase.

Graph 1.- Evolution of the migratory balance by Province

Source: EUSTAT

The positive migratory balance was due to people from overseas

If we consider solely the movements between the A.C. of the Basque Country and the other autonomous communities, 286 less people came in 2006 than in the previous year. As a result, the migratory balance between the A.C. of the Basque Country and the other autonomous communities was negative once more, showing a loss of 3,676 people. The migratory balance for people coming from overseas, however, was a positive one of 18,134 people, a figure that meant a 23% increase as regards the previous year.

In total, 201,095 changes of habitual place of residence were registered in the A.C. of the Basque Country:

Of this figure, 94,941 corresponded to a change in residence within the same municipality.

Intra-community mobility, which is to say movements whose origin and destination were different municipalities within the A.C. of the Basque Country, came to 46,318 movements.

In addition, there were 37,147 cases of external or extra-community immigration, whose origin was outside the Community and whose destination was the A.C. of the Basque Country.

Lastly, there were 22,689 cases of external or extra-community emigration, which is to say changes of residence originating in a municipality of the Autonomous Community and whose destination was outside of it.

Table 1.- Evolution of the movements and migratory balances. A.C. of the Basque Country.

Source: EUSTAT

External or extra-community geographical mobility, which involved 27.9 per thousand inhabitants of the A.C. of the Basque Country (Álava 35.7‰, Bizkaia 29.2‰ and Gipuzkoa 22.5‰), was relatively small if compared to the other autonomous communities, where 47 per thousand inhabitants moved.

The autonomous communities that contributed more population to the A.C. of the Basque Country than they received were Catalonia, Aragon, the Canary Islands, Murcia and Castile-La Mancha.

The most attractive Autonomous Communities for emigrants from the A.C. of the Basque Country were, in this order: Cantabria, Castile and Leon, Madrid and Navarre. These four accounted for one in two people that left our Community.

Immigrations of foreign nationals in 2006 totalled 24,252 individuals, accounting for 65% of total in-flows into our Community There has been a considerable increase as regards the in-flow of foreign nationals registered in the A.C. of the Basque Country since 2000, when positive migratory balances were registered. In 2006, there was a 23% increase in the number of cases of immigration by foreign nationals. It should be kept in mind that part of the foreign immigrants came from other Autonomous Communities. In 2006 this occurred in 5,415 cases.

As for the level of education, the lowest levels accounted for 51.2% of immigrations and 50% of emigrations, whereas the highest levels represented 18.9% of emigrations and also 18.9% of immigrations.

The average age of emigrants, 34.7, was higher than that of immigrants, 30.9.