In the EU in 2020, the share of non-nationals 16 years or older in a bad or very bad state of self-perceived health was lower than for nationals (7.8% for non-EU citizens and 7.2% for EU citizens except nationals, compared with 8.6% for nationals).
However, this reflects the different age structures of nationals and non-nationals: non-nationals living in private households in the EU are younger than nationals, whereas the highest share of people in a bad or very bad state of self-perceived health is among people 45-64 years old. This means that complementary analysis by age group is necessary to compare the health of non-nationals with that of nationals.
Source dataset: hlth_silc_24
In the 16-44 years age group, there were no significant differences between nationals and non-nationals regarding a bad or very bad state of self-perceived health (2.3% for nationals compared with 2.5% for EU citizens except nationals and 2.3% for non-EU citizens).
However, significant differences emerged in the 45-64 years age group. While only 8.0% of nationals reported a bad or very bad state of health, 10.0% of EU citizens except nationals and 14.8% of non-EU citizens reported the same.
Source dataset: hlth_silc_24
Among the EU Member States, the share of non-EU citizens aged 45-64 years perceiving their health as bad or very bad was the highest in Germany (28.7%), Denmark (26.0%) and France (25.6%). Meanwhile, the lowest shares were recorded in Poland (2.3%) and Italy (2.4%), while in Finland there was not a significant number of non-EU citizens aged 45-64 years in a bad or very bad state of self-perceived health in 2020.
For EU citizens except nationals (i.e. EU citizens residing in another EU country), the share of those aged 45-64 years who reported a bad or very bad state of health was the highest in Portugal (27.0%), followed by Latvia (16.9%) and Austria (15.9%). The lowest shares were observed in Malta (1.2%), Ireland (2.4%) and Italy (2.5%).
The highest shares of nationals aged 45-64 years who self-perceived their health as bad or very bad in 2020 were recorded in Croatia (14.8%), Slovakia (13.2%) and Germany (12.6%), while the lowest were in Malta (3.7%), Greece (4.6%) and Italy (4.7%).
For more information:
- Statistics Explained article on migrant integration statistics - health
- Dedicated section on migrant integration
- Database on migrant integration
Methodological notes:
- Self-perceived health is surveyed through a question about how a person perceives their health in general, using one of the following answer categories: very good, good, fair, bad or very bad. It refers to a person’s health in general rather than their present (perhaps temporary) state of health and concerns physical, social and emotional functions and biomedical signs and symptoms. The analysis only focuses on the aggregated category bad/very bad.
- Non-nationals: EU citizens except nationals and non-EU citizens.
- Data not available for EU citizens except nationals 45-64 years old: Bulgaria, Lithuania, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia.
- Data not available for non-EU citizens 45-64 years: Hungary, Romania and Slovakia.
- Low reliability for data on EU citizens except nationals 45-64 years old: EU, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Croatia, Latvia, Slovenia and Sweden.
- Low reliability for data on non-EU citizens 45-64 years: EU, Bulgaria, Czechia, Croatia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, and Poland.
- Italy: 2019 data.
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