How long do immigrants stay on Bonaire, St Eustatius, and Saba?
Between 2011 and 2016, 8.7 thousand people who were not born in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlandsnoot1 came to live in the Caribbean Netherlands. The majority of immigrants moved to Bonaire (5.7 thousand people), followed by Saba (2.0 thousand people), and St Eustatius (1.0 thousand people). Most of these new arrivals had left again within seven years.
On Bonaire, residents born outside the region were mainly born in the European Netherlands (2.7 thousand) and Central and South America (1.7 thousand). On St Eustatius, residents born outside the region were mainly from Central and South America (398) and the European Netherlands (249); on Saba, meanwhile, they were mainly from North America (942).
| Island | Central and South America | North America | European Netherlands | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bonaire | 1674 | 461 | 2711 | 826 |
| St Eustatius | 398 | 178 | 249 | 216 |
| Saba | 234 | 942 | 147 | 711 |
| ¹⁾Not born in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands | ||||
More than half of new arrivals leave within seven years
Of new arrivals who came to live on Bonaire between 2011 and 2016, just over half left again within seven years. The largest group were immigrants from the European Netherlands (61 percent left within seven years), followed by immigrants from Central and South America (29 percent).
On St Eustatius, 65 percent of new arrivals left the island within seven years. Of these, the largest group came from the European Netherlands (59 percent), followed by Central and South America (50 percent).
On Saba, 85 percent of new arrivals left the island within seven years. 92 percent of new arrivals from North America left the island within that period of time.
| Period of residence in years | Bonaire | St Eustatius | Saba |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 4.5 | 11.6 | 3.8 |
| 1 | 17.2 | 27.7 | 51.4 |
| 2 | 26.7 | 39.3 | 71.7 |
| 3 | 35.2 | 51.2 | 75.5 |
| 4 | 41.6 | 55.9 | 79.3 |
| 5 | 47.8 | 60.7 | 81.5 |
| 6 | 50.0 | 63.5 | 83.9 |
| 7 | 51.9 | 65.1 | 84.5 |
| ¹⁾ Not born in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, arrived in the CN between 2011-2016 | |||
| Period of residence in years | Number |
|---|---|
| 0 | 253 |
| 1 | 720 |
| 2 | 539 |
| 3 | 482 |
| 4 | 368 |
| 5 | 347 |
| 6 | 129 |
| 7 | 108 |
| ¹⁾ Not born in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, arrived in CN between 2011-2016 | |
Quarter of new arrivals in Bonaire and St Eustatius leave after one year
Of the 2,946 immigrants who came to live on Bonaire between 2011 and 2016 and left within seven years, a quarter (720) left after having lived on the island for one year. A small proportion left within a year.
Of the 687 new arrivals who left St Eustatius, a quarter (167) left after having lived on the island for one year.
New arrivals in Saba stayed the shortest time, on average. Of all immigrants (1,719) who arrived in Saba between 2011 and 2016, more than half (969) had left after one year.
| Period of residence in years | Number |
|---|---|
| 0 | 121 |
| 1 | 167 |
| 2 | 121 |
| 3 | 124 |
| 4 | 49 |
| 5 | 50 |
| 6 | 29 |
| 7 | 17 |
| ¹⁾ Not born in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, arrived in CN between 2011-2016 | |
| Period of residence in years | Aantal |
|---|---|
| 0 | 77 |
| 1 | 969 |
| 2 | 412 |
| 3 | 77 |
| 4 | 78 |
| 5 | 44 |
| 6 | 50 |
| 7 | 12 |
| ¹⁾ Not born in the Caribbean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, arrived in CN between 2011-2016 | |
Source
More information on population
Noten
The Caribbean part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands comprises:
- the countries of Aruba, Curaçao and St Maarten; and
- the 3 public bodies of Bonaire, St Eustatius and Saba (the Carribbean Netherlands).