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| Albanian fleeing Greece (illustration) |
Many Albanian citizens with valid residence permits are leaving Greece for richer countries, according to data published in August by the Greek Ministry for Migration and Asylum, local media reports.
According to data released by the Ministry in August 2021, 422,954 immigrants from Albania had valid Greek residence permits. A figure that constitutes 63.07 percent of legally resident foreigners in Greece. The data show that in 2022 there are 291,868 Albanian citizens with a valid residence permit in Greece.
The decrease in the number of Albanian immigrants in Greece is related not only to the stricter procedures for granting residence permits and obtaining Greek citizenship but also to a dynamic movement of Albanian workers and their families to other European countries with better conditions and perspectives.
They choose other European countries
A large number of Albanians living in Greece have emigrated to Northern Europe and Great Britain after encountering difficulties in Greece in terms of employment and rising prices.
The 2022 data released by the Ministry include 13,329 Albanian citizens identified with the special designation "homogeneous" in their identity cards. This officially identified them as individuals of the Greek minority from Albania.
In total, there may be more than half a million individuals of Albanian origin in Greece who, together with their children, have acquired Greek citizenship over the years.
Italy and Greece still host the largest number of Albanians living abroad, where the number is increasing in Italy while in Greece it is decreasing due to economic difficulties.
Albanian immigrants integrate better in Greece than other foreigners