- Methods and Projects
- Standards and Classifications
Standardised Methodological Report
Migration Statistic
- 1Contact
- 1.1Contact organisation
National Statistics Institute of Spain
- 1.5Contact mail address
Avenida de Manoteras 50-52 - 28050 Madrid
- 1.1Contact organisation
- 2Metadata update
- 2.1Metadata last certified
27/05/2022
- 2.2Metadata last posted
23/06/2021
- 2.3Metadata last update
27/05/2022
- 2.1Metadata last certified
- 3Statistical presentation
- 3.1Data description
The Migration Statistics aims to carry out a statistical approximation of the number of immigrations from overseas, emigrations overseas, migrations between Autonomous Communities and migrations between Provinces, broken down by sex, year of birth, age, citizenship and country of origin of the migrant and the origin and destination of the migration.
- 3.2Classification system
- Clasificaciones utilizadas
Lists of Autonomous Communities, Provinces and countries of citizenship and birth are used in accordance with INE standards.
- Clasificaciones utilizadas
- 3.3Sector coverage
Migratory movements that affect the population residing in Spain.
- 3.4Statistical concepts and definitions
- Age
Age in years refers to the number of birthdays reached by the reference date, in other words, the age last birthday.
- Citizenship
Citizenship is defined as the particular legal bond between an individual and his/her State,, acquired by birth or naturalisation, whether by declaration, option, marriage or other means according to the national legislation.
- Emigration
Action by which a person who, having previously been a usual resident in one territory, ceases to have usual residence therein for a period that is, or is expected to be, at least twelve months in duration.
- Foreign emigration
Emigration in which the new usual residence of the migrant is in a foreign country, with the prior usual residence in Spain.
- Foreign immigration
Immigration in which the prior usual residence of the migrant was in a foreign country.
- Immigration
Action by which a person establishes her/his usual residence in a territory for a period that is, or is expected to be, at least twelve months in duration, having previously been a usual resident of another territory.
- Inter-Autonomous Community emigration
Emigration with an origin in an Autonomous Community in which the next usual residence of the migrant is located in a Spanish municipality not belonging to said Autonomous Community.
- Inter-Autonomous Community immigration
Immigration to a destination in an Autonomous Community in which the prior usual residence of the migrant was located in a Spanish municipality not belonging to said Autonomous Community.
- Inter-provincial emigration
Emigration with an origin in a province in which the next usual residence of the migrant is located in a Spanish municipality not belonging to said province.
- Inter-provincial immigration
Immigration with a destination in a province in which the prior usual residence of the migrant was located in a Spanish municipality not belonging to said province.
- Migrant
Person who takes part in a migration (immigration or emigration).
- Migratory balance
Difference between immigration and emigration.
- Place of birth
Place where a person was born, in other words, the place of habitual residence of the mother at the time of birth, determined on the date of collecting data.
- Province ( Article 141.1 of the Spanish Constitution)
The province is a local institution with its own legal status, determined by grouping municipalities and dividing territories in order to fulfil State activities. Any alteration in the provincial limits is to be approved by the General Courts by means of constitutional law.
- Sex
Sex refers to the biological sex of the person. According to the WHO, "sex" refers to biological and physiological features defining to men and women, whereas "gender" refers to the roles, behaviour, activities and attributes constructed socially that a specific culture regards as appropriate for men and women. In accordance with this description, the WHO regards "man" and "woman" as sex categories, whereas "male" and "female" are gender categories.
- Usual residence
Place where a person normally spends rest periods, not taking into account temporary absences due to leisure trips, holidays, visits to family and friends, business, visiting friends or relatives or religious pilgrimages. Nevertheless, it is important to highlight that only usual residents in a region will be considered:
- Those who, according to the previous definition, would usually have lived therein for a continuous period of at least 12 months.
- Those who, according to the previous definition, would have established their usual residence therein less than 12 months ago, but with the intention of remaining therein for at least one year.
Where the above circumstances cannot be established, "usual residence" shall mean the place of registered residence.
- Age
- 3.5Statistical unit
Migration.
- 3.6Statistical population
All migratory movements (changes in usual residence) occurring during the reference period from Spain to overseas and vice versa, which include foreign migration and domestic migration, comprising migration between Spanish regions (Provinces or Autonomous Communities).
- 3.7Reference area
The statistic covers the entire national territory, and is disseminated for the national total, for each one of the Autonomous Communities and Cities, and for the Provinces.
- 3.8Time coverage
Since 2008.
- 3.9Base period
2008.
- 3.1Data description
- 4Unit of measure
- 4.1Unit of measure
Number of emigrations of residents in Spain to overseas.
Number of immigrations from people who are residents overseas.
Number of migrations between Provinces/Autonomous Communities of residents in Spain.
- 4.1Unit of measure
- 5Reference period
- 5.1Reference period
Calendar year and semester.
Data referred to the period: SEMESTRAL 2021
- 5.1Reference period
- 6Institutional mandate
- 6.1Legal acts and other agreements
The compilation and dissemination of the data are governed by the Statistical Law No. 12/1989 "Public Statistical Function" of May 9, 1989, and Law No. 4/1990 of June 29 on “National Budget of State for the year 1990" amended by Law No. 13/1996 "Fiscal, administrative and social measures" of December 30, 1996, makes compulsory all statistics included in the National Statistics Plan. The National Statistical Plan 2009-2012 was approved by the Royal Decree 1663/2008. It contains the statistics that must be developed in the four year period by the State General Administration's services or any other entity dependent on it. All statistics included in the National Statistics Plan are statistics for state purposes and are obligatory. The National Statistics Plan 2021-2024, approved by Royal Decree 1110/2020, of 15 December, is the Plan currently implemented. This statistical operation has governmental purposes, and it is included in the National Statistics Plan 2021-2024. (Statistics of the State Administration).
Regulation 862/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council on Community statistics on migration and international protection.The Spanish version of this European Union law is accessible at www.ine.es/normativa/leyes/UE/minine.htm#30277
- 6.2Data sharing
The exchanges of information needed to elaborate statistics between the INE and the rest of the State statistical offices (Ministerial Departments, independent bodies and administrative bodies depending on the State General Administration), or between these offices and the Autonomic statistical offices, are regulated in the LFEP (Law of the Public Statistic Function). This law also regulates the mechanisms of statistical coordination, and concludes cooperation agreements between the different offices when necessary.
The results of the Migration Statistics are broadcast on an international level as Spain's official figures on migrations for all purposes.
- 6.1Legal acts and other agreements
- 7Confidentiality
- 7.1Confidentiality - policy
The Statistical Law No. 12/1989 specifies that the INE cannot publish, or make otherwise available, individual data or statistics that would enable the identification of data for any individual person or entity. Regulation (EC) No 223/2009 on European statistics stipulates the need to establish common principles and guidelines ensuring the confidentiality of data used for the production of European statistics and the access to those confidential data with due account for technical developments and the requirements of users in a democratic society
- 7.2Confidentiality - data treatment
INE provides information on the protection of confidentiality at all stages of the statistical process: INE questionnaires for the operations in the national statistical plan include a legal clause protecting data under statistical confidentiality. Notices prior to data collection announcing a statistical operation notify respondents that data are subject to statistical confidentiality at all stages. For data processing, INE employees have available the INE data protection handbook, which specifies the steps that should be taken at each stage of processing to ensure reporting units' individual data are protected. The microdata files provided to users are anonymised.
No additional confidentiality measures have been adopted in addition to those already indicated as regularly used for all INE operations.
- 7.1Confidentiality - policy
- 8Release policy
- 8.1Release calendar
The advance release calendar that shows the precise release dates for the coming year is disseminated in the last quarter of each year.
- 8.2Release calendar access
The calendar is disseminated on the INEs Internet website (Publications Calendar)
- 8.3User access
The data are released simultaneously according to the advance release calendar to all interested parties by issuing the press release. At the same time, the data are posted on the INE's Internet website (www.ine.es/en) almost immediately after the press release is issued. Also some predefined tailor-made requests are sent to registered users. Some users could receive partial information under embargo as it is publicly described in the European Statistics Code of Practice
- 8.1Release calendar
- 9Frequency of dissemination
- 9.1Frequency of dissemination
Biannual.
- 9.1Frequency of dissemination
- 10Accessibility and clarity
- 10.1News release
The results of the statistical operations are normally disseminated by using press releases that can be accessed via both the corresponding menu and the Press Releases Section in the web
- 10.2Publications
No specific publications are made. All information relating to the Migration Statistics is published on the INE website in the Demographic phenomena section of the Demography and population section, at:
- 10.3On-line database
INEbase is the system the INE uses to store statistical information on the Internet. It contains all the information the INE produces in electronic formats. The primary organisation of the information follows the theme-based classification of the Inventory of Statistical Operations of the State General Administration . The basic unit of INEbase is the statistical operation, defined as the set of activities that lead to obtaining statistical results on a determined sector or subject based on the individually collected data. Also included in the scope of this definition are synthesis preparation.
Tables with aggregated results are available at:
- 10.4Micro-data access
A lot of statistical operations disseminate public domain anonymized files, available free of charge for downloading in the INE website Microdata Section
Not available.
- 10.5Other
This operation allows for users' tailored requests for information not included in the results tables to be fulfilled, following a viability study, in all cases, by INE.
Requests can be made through the Information Area:
- 10.6Documentation on methodology
The operation's methodology can be accessed at:
- 10.7Quality documentation
Sections 10.6 to 17.2 of this document are considered to the user-oriented quality report for this operation.
- 10.1News release
- 11Quality management
- 11.1Quality assurance
Quality assurance framework for the INE statistics is based on the ESSCoP, the European Statistics Code of Practice made by EUROSTAT. The ESSCoP is made up of 16 principles, gathered in three areas: Institutional Environment, Processes and Products. Each principle is associated with some indicators which make possible to measure it. In order to evaluate quality, EUROSTAT provides different tools: the indicators mentioned above, Self-assessment based on the DESAP model, peer review, user satisfaction surveys and other proceedings for evaluation.
The Migration Statistics is prepared from the statistical processing of changes registered in the Municipal Register. The quality of its results depends on the coverage of this regarding the residential changes of the population and on the appropriate statistical processing applied to the aforementioned administrative information.
Firstly, a check of the Municipal Register is carried out, so that all the information used is coherent:
- Registers that do not have certain basic variables properly completed are not used: sex, province, date of movements.
- Filtering of variables in which different values are found in different registers for the same individual (date and place of birth).
- Checking of consistency between variables. For example, the date of birth should be less or equal to the date of register movement.
- An imputation process is carried out on the values of the variables of citizenship, country of birth and country of origin or destination that are blank or invalid.
Nonetheless, the quality of the Municipal Register is very high, and increasingly so.
In any case, its results maintain total consistency with those provided by the Population Figures and by the Vital Statistics and Statistics on Acquisition of Spanish Citizenship of Residents released by INE. There is also total coherence between all territorial levels.
- 11.2Quality assessment
Complete consistency is guaranteed between the data and those provided by the Population Figures, as well as with the figures on births, deaths and acquisition of Spanish citizenship provided by the Vital Statistics and the Statistics on Acquisition of Spanish Citizenship of Residents respectively from 2012.
The weakest point of this statistic is the lack of records, in the Municipal Register, of emigrations overseas. This shortcoming is supplemented using expiration processes for foreigners implemented over the last few years by the Municipal Register, although information is provided with a certain time lag.
- 11.1Quality assurance
- 12Relevance
- 12.1User needs
These data conform to official data on Spanish migrations. The first user of these is the national statistical system itself, in particular they are used by INE as a basic resource for the preparation of the Population Figures for those resident in Spain, in each Autonomous Community and in each Province. They are also available to all users who need to analyse the demographic evolution of the country or use them, in turn, in the production or analysis of other statistical information. Furthermore, these figures are used by international bodies as Spanish migration data for all purposes.
There is no information available at the municipal level: the only available statistical information on changes of residence between municipalities is the quantification of increases and decreases in the respective Municipal Registers provided by the Residential Variation Statistics, also prepared by the INE.
- 12.2User satisfaction
The INE has carried out general user satisfaction surveys in 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016 and 2019 and it plans to continue doing so every three years. The purpose of these surveys is to find out what users think about the quality of the information of the INE statistics and the extent to which their needs of information are covered. In addition, additional surveys are carried out in order to acknowledge better other fields such as dissemination of the information, quality of some publications...
On the INE website, in its section Methods and Projects / Quality and Code of Practice / INE quality management / User surveys are available surveys conducted to date.(Click next link)
- 12.3Completeness
This operation provides all the information required by Regulation 862/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council on statistics on migration and international protection in relation to the figures on migrations between Spain and the rest of the world.
The rate of available mandatory data is, therefore, 100% (R1=100%)..
- 12.1User needs
- 13Accuracy and reliability
- 13.1Overall accuracy
There are no available measures of accuracy of the results of this operation.
The main source of error comes from a lack of records, in the Municipal Register, of emigrations overseas. This shortcoming is supplemented using expiration processes for foreigners implemented over the last few years by the Municipal Register, although information is provided with a certain time lag.
Being the Migration Statistics based on administrative sources, they are not affected by sampling errors. Non-sampling errors may come from both the sources and the information treatment in this operation (lack of coverage, measurement errors). The direct measurement of accuracy in this case is not considered possible. The main instrument for analyzing the accuracy is the analysis of the revisions. The revisions show the degree of proximity between subsequent estimators of the same value, and it is reasonable to assume that the estimators converge on the true value when they are based on better and more reliable data. (See 17.2)
- 13.2Sampling error
Not applicable to this statistical operation as this is a synthetic statistic, prepared using other sources, and not a sample survey.
- 13.3Non-sampling error
As this is a synthetic operation, based on the statistical processing of data from register sources (see section 18.1), non-sampling errors for this statistical operation are mainly due to:
- Possible register errors that are attempted to be corrected through a filtering process.
- Possible lack of completion of variables, for which an automatic imputation process is carried out. That is, the non-response rate per item (A5) is the same as the imputation rate (A7). For example, for 2019 provisional data of external immigration:
A5(citizenship) = A7(citizenship) = 0%
A5(country of birth) = A7(country of birth) = 0.01%
- Possible lack of information when estimating delays in registration, which is supplemented by estimation mechanisms.
- 13.1Overall accuracy
- 14Timeliness and punctuality
- 14.1Timeliness
These results are released biannually; provisional results are released six months after the reference date of these (TP1=6 months) and definitive data are released 12 months after the reference date (TP2= 12 months).
- 14.2Punctuality
This operation is released within the time established in INE's structural statistics calendar (TP3=0; it is disseminated with no delay).
- 14.1Timeliness
- 15Coherence and Comparability
- 15.1Comparability - geographical
The results are completely consistent between territories, at all levels of disaggregation. Furthermore, they are calculated based on the definitions established in Regulation 862/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council on statistics of migration and international protection and supported, in turn, by the United Nations, which boosts its international comparability.
- 15.2Comparability - over time
Data are provided from 2008 in accordance with a homogeneous methodology and, therefore, are completely comparable over time.
The annual series of results, therefore, comprises 14 comparable elements, and the biannual series comprises 28 comparable elements. That is:
- CC2(annual) = 14
- CC2(biannual) = 28
- 15.3Coherence - cross domain
The Migration Statistics is formed according to concepts and definitions established by Eurostat in Regulation 862/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council on statistics on migration and international protection, which boosts its international comparability.
These results are used as a basic resource in the calculation of the Population Figures, as their results are completely consistent with these and with the results of the Vital Statistics on births and deaths, as well as with the Acquisition of Spanish Citizenship of Residents.
Another source that provides information on changes in residence of the Spanish population are the Residential Variation Statistics, also prepared by the INE, which consists of the exploitation of register changes made in the Municipal Register of Inhabitants. While this is the only source of data that deals with the concept of migrations until 2007, from 2008 it has coexisted with the Migration Statistics, which carries out statistical processing of the aforementioned register changes to adapt to the concepts imposed by the Regulation, and from there, the differences between the two.
- 15.4Coherence - internal
The data are completely demographically consistent and consistent between territories.
- 15.1Comparability - geographical
- 16Cost and burden
- 16.1Cost and burden
This is a synthetic statistic, prepared using administrative sources. For this reason, collaboration with respondent units is not required, and there are no data collection costs.
The estimated budgetary appropriation required to finance this statistic, as provided for in the 2022 Annual Programme of the 2021-2024 National Statistics Plan, is 117.86 thousand Euros.
- 16.1Cost and burden
- 17Data revision
- 17.1Data revision - policy
The INE of Spain has a policy which regulates the basic aspects of statistical data revision, seeking to ensure process transparency and product quality. This policy is laid out in the document approved by the INE board of directors on 13 March of 2015, which is available on the INE website, in the section "Methods and projects/Quality and Code of Practice/INE’s Quality management/INE’s Revision policy" (link).
This general policy sets the criteria that the different type of revisions should follow: routine revision- it is the case of statistics whose production process includes regular revisions-; more extensive revision- when methodological or basic reference source changes take place-; and exceptional revision- for instance, when an error appears in a published statistic-.
Reviews adhere to the availability of new data for the reference period. The definitive data, released 12 months after the end of the reference period, involves a review of the provisional results released 6 months after the reference period.
- 17.2Data revision - practice
This operation's provisional data, released six months after the reference period of the data, are reviewed with the corresponding definitive data from the 12 months following the reference period. The most relevant indicators are the following, and have been obtained from the semesters since the first of 2012 to the second of 2020:
- MAR(external immigration) = 1,801
- RMAR(external immigration) = 0.008
- MR(external immigration) = -1,207
- MAR(external emigration) = 3,959
- RMAR(external emigration) = 0.022
- MR(external emigration) = -3,569
- 17.1Data revision - policy
- 18Statistical processing
- 18.1Source data
In principle, the Migration Statistics is prepared through the statistical processing of the variations registered in the database of the Municipal Register.
However, the observation of changes in the Municipal Register could be insufficient in measuring migratory flows. Thus, this operation was created with the aim of incorporating as many additional sources of information and methodological improvements as deemed appropriate into its calculation methodology to enable improved identification and measurement of the migratory phenomenon. These methodological improvements will be incorporated during the forthcoming editions and will be documented to inform researchers and users.
- 18.2Frequency of data collection
Biannual.
- 18.3Data collection
Data prepared through the statistical processing of changes registered in the database of the Municipal Register. The aforementioned database is updated monthly by the INE based on the information received from each of the City Councils of Spain in relation to the latest changes registered in the respective municipal registers, which allows for the centralised management of these.
- 18.4Data validation
Multiple analyses are carried out on the coherence of the evolution of migration figures and of these with data from different demographic statistical sources.
- 18.5Data compilation
Initially, the Migration Statistics is prepared using the residential changes registered in the database of the Municipal Register. Statistical processing is carried out on movements registered in the registers, based on:
- Selection of register movements compatible with overseas or domestic migration in the period considered.
- Adjustment to the statistical definition of migration through the filtering of consecutive migratory movements of a single individual that are less than twelve months apart, from the individual link of consecutive deregistration and registration movements in the Municipal Register's database.
- Imputation of the country of birth, country of citizenship and country of origin or destination (this last variable is only applicable to overseas migrations) of previous migratory flows that are blank or have invalid values for these variables, being based on the registers of the country of birth, citizenship and country of origin (overseas immigration) or destination (overseas emigration) that are properly completed.
- Final adjustment on international migration data, consisting of eliminating those foreign emigrations by population groups that do not appear as residents in Spain, according to the Population Figures, resident in the country at the beginning of each period, or adding the corresponding foreign immigrations if this was not possible, to guarantee total consistency between demographic flows and population stocks.
- Calculation of the year of arrival in Spain for those people who emigrate, beginning the series in external emigration of the year 2018. This estimation is based on the history of movements in the Population Register for each person.
- Calculation of the level of education, relationship with economic activity and occupation for persons leaving the country, starting the series for out-migrations occurring in the year 2019, and only for definitive annual data. These data are obtained from administrative registers and reflect the situation of the person on 1 January of the reference year.
- 18.6Adjustment
If necessary, a final adjustment of overseas migration data is carried out resulting from the statistical processing of information registered in the Municipal Register to guarantee complete consistency of these with the data of the Population Figures.
- 18.1Source data
- 19Comment
- 19.1Comment
- 19.1Comment