In 2024, 70,1% of emigrants were aged between 15-44. This age group only makes up 36,6% of the entire Lithuanian population. In the long run, as the number of young people is decreasing due to emigration, this causes serious demographic problems – diminishing number of marriages, decreasing birth rate, lack of workforce. A shrinking proportion of working people must support a growing number of the unemployed.
A reverse trend is being observed when comparing the number of older emigrants and the number of Lithuania’s residents. People that are 65 or older only comprise about 2 percent of the total emigration flow, despite making up about 20 percent of the entire population.
For many years, the United Kingdom has been the main destination for Lithuanian emigrants, but from 2020 onwards, its popularity is decreasing.
In 2024, 20% of Lithuanian citizens and foreigners emigrated to Belarus, 19% – to Ukraine. The United Kingdom and Norway combined accounted for 11% of all emigrants. Notably, the number of emigrants to Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan also increased – a total of 8,7% of all emigrants left for these countries.
In 2024, Lithuania had 2.89 million permanent residents – 47% men and 53% women. In the same year, the majority of emigrants were men – 73%, while women accounted for only 27%.
Child migration is the movement of persons aged between 3 and 18 years, inside or outside national borders, with or without parents or legal guardians, to another country or region. Minors who emigrate are affected by the same motivations as adults. It includes economic reasons, aspirations for better education, a search for better opportunities, etc.
From 2017 to 2021, the number of emigrating children steadily decreased. In 2021, compared to 2017, the scale of emigrating children decreased by almost 83 percent. Since 2022, there has been a noticeable trend of increasing children's emigration. In 2023, children’s emigration number accounted for 4352, while in 2024, this number dropped to 2405.
Between 2017 and 2024, the number of boys and girls who emigrated was roughly equal. During this period, on average, 51% were boys, and 49% were girls.
Source: State Child Rights Protection and Adoption Service. Updated: 2025-09-01
In 2024, financial transfers to Lithuania from private persons living abroad amounted to 974.49 million EUR and equalled to 1.2% of Lithuania’s GDP.
Note: It is impossible to single out the remittances sent exclusively by emigrants. Therefore, the number given reflects remittances in general.
Source: Central bank of the Republic of Lithuania. Updated: 2025-09-01