Foreigners registering at the lowest rate for 5yrs

A total of 5'747'734 foreign citizens were registered as resident in Spain on 1st January this year, 1.8 percent more than the same day in 2010, but the lowest increase in immigrants in the last five years, Central Government figures confirmed yesterday.

Of the total population of the country, 12.2 percent is foreign, sources said. According to the census of 1st January, eight regions of the country had immigrant numbers above the national average. The Balearics has the highest percentage of foreigners in its resident community (22 percent) followed by Valencia (17.4%) and Madrid (16.7%). In absolute terms, Andalucia has the highest foreign population of the country (704'056).

The regions with the lowest percentage of foreign population are Extremadura (3.5%); Galicia (3.9%) and Asturias (4.5%).