Millions of people around the world are migrating from different countries and are looking for the best place for themselves and their families. The number of Russian emigrants is growing steadily. As for the most popular destinations, Russians have certain preferences.
According to the results of a sociological study, Russians, who are in a fairly stable economic position, consider Australia to be the most popular destination for emigration. About 9% of respondents would like to permanently leave for this country. 7% of Russians would prefer to settle in Germany. Sunny Italy was chosen by 6.5% of respondents, the United States - 6%, the United Kingdom - 5%. Then the wishes of the Russians were divided between Spain and France, Canada and New Zealand. Countries such as Switzerland, Sweden, Finland, Austria, Norway and the Czech Republic were called.
However, if we look at the statistical information, it can be noted that most of the emigrants (40%) do not leave for Australia, but for the USA, Germany, Israel and Finland. It should be emphasized that the flow of emigrants to America and Israel has been decreasing recently, but to Germany, on the contrary, it is growing.
This is followed by the Baltic countries, where approximately 1, 000 people leave annually. Spain and Italy become home to 800 Russians, while Great Britain, France and Canada - to 500. For ten years, the number of people wishing to start a new life in the Czech Republic, Australia and New Zealand has almost doubled.
Each year, several hundred Russians join the ranks of citizens of Bulgaria and Greece. Norway, which makes quite serious demands on emigrants, allows only 200 Russians a year to stay on permanent residence. Poland, the Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, and Turkey allow about a hundred Russians to settle annually.
But China has ceased to attract the attention of compatriots. Since 2000, the ranks of those wishing to settle in the Middle Kingdom have noticeably thinned. If at the beginning of the century an average of 1, 000 Russians emigrated there, now this figure has dropped to 50.
It is worth noting that in recent years the qualitative composition of Russians who want to emigrate has also changed. There are more people with higher education, legal and business training, academic ranks, and high professional qualifications.
In addition, there is an opinion of experts that people who own real estate abroad and currently live in Russia may become potential emigrants. According to various sources, their number varies from 1–2.5 million people. Most of their property is located in Germany, Finland, the Baltic countries, Bulgaria, Spain, and Cyprus.
Interestingly, the Russian population would decline by 7% if other countries had given permission for entry to Russian emigrants without bureaucratic barriers.
