Last year, for the first time since 2021, Germany experienced net positive migration from the United States – meaning more people came to Germany from the US than the other way around.
After years of losing thousands of residents to the US each year, the trend flipped in 2025, according to figures shared by Germany’s Federal Statistics Office (Destatis).
This represents a significant shift in migration trends between the two countries, and it comes as more and more Americans appear to be seeking paths to settle outside of the US and in other European countries.
Are more US citizens coming to Germany?
The Local contacted Destatis to ask how many US citizens had moved to or from Germany in recent years. Destatis shared month by month figures for arrivals, departures and net totals dating back to 2022, and including preliminary figures for 2025.
When these monthly figures are added up, the annual figures are as follows:
- 2022: 15,518 arrivals, 12,266 departures, 3,252 net total
- 2023: 14,890 arrivals, 11,856 departures, 3,034 net total
- 2024: 14,600 arrivals, 11,896 departures, 2,704 net total
- 2025: 14,991 arrivals, 11,227 departures, 3,764 net total
This data reveals that the immigration of US citizens has been relatively stable and consistently net-positive for Germany over the last few years. Each year since at least 2022 a few thousand more US citizens came to Germany than left.
According to Destatis, approximately 118,130 US citizens lived in Germany as of the end of 2025.
Note that these figures do not include US military personnel or their direct families, who are not required to register their residence in Germany. As of 2025, its estimated there are about 36,000 active US military troops stationed in Germany, and some of these soldiers also have US citizen family members living in Germany with them.
READ ALSO: Who would really be affected by the removal of US troops from Germany?
Looking at the number of arrivals and departures each month, some interesting patterns repeat from year to year. The number of US citizens arriving in Germany spikes each year around August and September, whereas departures from Germany consistently spike in July and December.
This appears to correlate with Germany’s academic calendar, with a large number of US students arriving in late summer/early autumn ahead of the coming school year.
Departures in July or December also appear to be aligned with the end of the spring/summer or fall/winter terms.
READ ALSO: How to apply for a Master's in Germany as an international student
Movement of people between US and Germany
While the slow but steady movement of more US citizens into Germany has been relatively steady in recent years, a look at big picture immigration figures – including Germans and other country nationals – reveals a recent shift in the movement of people between the countries.
Last year marked the first time that more people came to Germany from the US than the other way around since at least 2021.
Overall, 23,804 people arrived in Germany from the US in 2025, according to Destatis figures. At the same time 21,998 people left Germany to move to the US. In total this leaves Germany with a net gain of 1,806 people.
These figures include the number of US citizens detailed above, but also German nationals and others moving between the two countries.
That's not a very large surplus, but it does represent a shift compared to previous years where Germany consistently saw thousands more moving the other way instead.
In 2024, more people had moved from Germany to the US, resulting in a net loss of approximately 4,071 people. In 2023, Germany’s net loss to the US was 3,468 and in 2022 it was 4,547.
A press release published by Destatis in November of last year noted that the number of departures to the US was down 17.8 percent from January to September of 2025 compared to the previous year. Departures had been consistently lower for each respective month.
Notable shift, but not an exodus
Following President Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 US presidential election, there was some speculation that certain groups of Americans – especially those opposed to him or threatened by his policies – would seek to leave the country and relocate, potentially flocking to countries in Europe.
Now, roughly a year and a half into Trump’s second term, immigration data suggests there has been a notable shift in immigration to and from the US. Last year more people left the US than arrived there: something that had not previously occurred since the Great Depression, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal.
But this shift has not amounted to anything close to a widespread exodus from the US to Germany. Instead, the number of US citizens moving to Germany has so far remained steady, while the total number of people moving from Germany to the US has dropped.
READ ALSO: Why do some US citizens seek asylum in Germany?
Some other European countries do appear to be receiving more and more Americans in recent years.
Spain has become the top destination in the EU for Americans, granting a record 15,638 first-time residence permits in 2024.
France saw a sharp 14.3 percent year-on-year increase in 2025, issuing 15,000 first-time residency permits to Americans last year.
Meanwhile in Italy, the country’s resident American population had grown by 6.7 percent in a single year, as of the start of 2025.
Anecdotally, some readers of The Local have told us that Trump and his administration's policies were part of their decision to move to Germany, as well as to Spain, France and Italy. But there are also other pull factors involved that may be luring Americans into different countries in Europe.
France, Spain and Italy have all recently introduced ‘digital nomad visas’ which has opened up a path for Americans with remote jobs to settle in those countries.
Germany does not have a digital-nomad visa, which may explain in-part why it has not seen a spike in incoming Americans compared with its European neighbours to the south.
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