Ukraine, Syria top list as Berlin counts 4m refugees and war displaced

Around 4 million refugees and displaced people were living in Germany last year, according to figures published by the Federal Statistical Office on Wednesday.

Of that total, about 3.3 million people who had fled or been displaced had come to Germany since 1950, the office said. A further around 713,000 were people displaced by World War II who had immigrated before 1950.

The figures are based on the microcensus. Only refugees living in private main-residence households were counted; people in refugee accommodation and other shared facilities were not included. 

The statistics also cover only refugees who were still living in Germany in 2025 - not people who were turned away, left of their own accord or died.

According to the statistical office based in the city of Wiesbaden, refugees who had immigrated to Germany were on average 39 years old in 2025. Some 45% were women and 55% were men.

Of the 3.3 million refugees, 25% were born in Ukraine and 22% in Syria. "These two countries of origin thus already account for just under half of all refugees living in Germany in 2025 who immigrated since 1950," the Federal Statistical Office wrote.

"Displaced people from World War II are those who were born as German nationals in former German territories and immigrated to the present-day territory of Germany before 1950," the office wrote. The 713,000 displaced people living in Germany were on average 85 years old in 2025.

According to the statisticians, 61% of them were women and 39% were men.