Warsaw: Poland's population fell by 123,000 in 2024, marking the largest drop among all EU member states for the second year running, Eurostat data released Tuesday show. From January 1, 2024, to January 1, 2025, Poland's population decreased from 36,620,970 to 36,497,495, a decline of 123,475, according to the data. This marks the sixth consecutive year of population decline in Poland.

According to Philippines News Agency, most EU member states experienced a population increase in 2024, with the bloc's overall population expanding by 1.07 million, or 0.24 percent. In contrast, Hungary and Italy ranked second and third in population decline, with decreases of 45,125 and 37,053, respectively. Meanwhile, the largest population increases were observed in Spain (458,289), France (292,567), and Germany (121,095).

Eurostat attributes this trend to the fact that, since 2012, the negative natural change in the EU population - with more deaths than births - has been offset by positive net migration. Despite Poland receiving a significant number of Ukrainian refugees, it has not been enough to counteract the negative demographic trend driven by falling birth rates and high excess death numbers during the pandemic.

Poland's state statistical agency, GUS, estimates that the country's population could fall to as low as 26.7 million by 2060, a 27 percent decrease from current numbers. Since their EU accession, most former communist-ruled member states, including Poland, have transitioned from developing to developed market status. This shift brings investments but also challenges common to Western economies: aging populations, labor shortages, fast-rising wages, and the necessity for immigration, particularly in sectors such as industry, medicine, transportation, and information technology.

Data from the European Employment Services (EURES) indicate that nearly all Central and Eastern European countries saw a population decline between 2010 and 2021. Poland's social security office, ZUS, reports that the dependency ratio - the number of people of non-working age compared to those of working age - has increased. The office suggests that the number of foreigners of working age in Poland will need to rise annually by 200,000 to 400,000 people to meet labor demands.