Population change - 1st half of 2021

In the first six months of the year, a half of the marriages entered into took place in June

13.09.2021
Code: 130080-21
 

As of June 30, the population of the Czech Republic exceeded 10.7 million, below which it fell due to the high number of deaths in the first quarter of the year. However, the population increase of 1.2 thousand persons in the period from January to June was the lowest since 2014. The numbers of live births, marriages and divorces in the first half of the year increased year-on-year. The balance of international migration returned to the level of 2019 after last year's drop.

The population of the Czech Republic increased by 1.2 thousand to 10.703 million during the first half of the year. This was the lowest growth between the start-year and the mid-year population in the last eight years. "The low population growth in the first half of this year was due to the negative value of the natural balance. The number of deaths was by 21.3 thousand higher than the number of live births, while a year earlier, in the first half of 2020, the decrease in natural balance was only 2.6 thousand," commented Michaela Němečková from the Demographic Statistics Unit. The balance of international migration reached 22.5 thousand persons, which was slightly higher than in the same period in 2019. Compared to 2020, when the migration was limited by anti-epidemic measures, increased 2.5 times.

During the first six months of the year, a total of 55.0 thousand children were born alive – the inhabitants of the Czech Republic. The number of live births was by four hundred (by 1%) higher than in the first half of 2020. At the same time, the number of women of reproductive age continued to decline. The majority of children, a quarter of the total, were born to women aged 29–31, namely women born from 1989 to 1991. A total of 25.8 thousand children were born to women as the first-born children, 21.4 thousand were second-born and 7.8 thousand were born in the higher order. The share of live births outside marriage in the first half of the year increased slightly year-on-year from 47.9% to 48.4%. It remains the highest in the first-born (59.0%), and the lowest in the second-born (38.9%).

The number of deaths reached 76.3 thousand during the first half of this year, by 19.1 thousand (by 33%) higher than in the same period of 2020. The largest year-on-year increase was registered in March (by 64%), in the following months the excess of deaths gradually decreased. The lowest number of deaths was registered in June (8.5 thousand) – this was the first month this year when the number of deaths was lower year-on-year (by 0.3 thousand). Of the total number of deaths, 40.8 thousand were men (53.5%) and 35.5 thousand were women; the year-on-year increase was more pronounced for men (by 39%; for women by 27%). From the point of view of five-year age groups, among the deceased men, those aged 70–74 and 75–79 predominated (war and post-war generations), while among the deceased women, most were 85–89 and 80–84 years old (generations born in the 30s of the 20th century). Compared to the number of deaths in the first half of 2020, there were especially more deaths of persons aged 75–79 and 70–74 this year (by 51% and 49%, respectively). A total of 114 children died during their first year of life between January and June 2021, by 16 less than in the same period of the previous year, which corresponded to an infant mortality rate of 2.1‰.

The months of January to June this year were the period of marriage for 14.9 thousand couples.
Although epidemiological measures limiting the number of wedding guests continues to apply, compared to the same period in 2020, there were by 1.2 thousand (by 8%) more weddings this year. However, it was by 8.2 thousand less as in the year of 2019. The highest monthly total of marriages was recorded in June (7.3 thousand), in which almost one half of all marriages of the first half of the year took place, while the lowest number of marriages was in January (0.7 thousand). After last year, when the lowest number of marriages were in March (wedding ceremonies were banned for most of the month), the minimum returned to the level of first month of the year. Most grooms were aged 30–34, while most brides were aged 25–29. For marriages of a higher order, the spouses aged 45–49 predominated.

The number of divorces that came into force by the end of June 2021 was 10.8 thousand, by 0.5 thousand more in the year-on-year comparison. The majority of divorces (54%) were initiated by a joint divorce petition by both husband and wife. In terms of duration of the marriage at divorce, the most marriages ended after two to five years (almost one fifth). Compared to the previous year, the share of marriages in which minor children lived increased (from 59 to 62%). A total of 10.6 thousand minor children were affected by the divorce.

According to the data taken from administrative data sources a total of 36.1 thousand people immigrated to the Czech Republic during the first half and, on the contrary, 13.6 thousand people moved abroad from the Czech Republic. The net migration reached 22.5 thousand. Compared to the same period in 2020, when statistics were affected not only by epidemiological measures but also by the amendment to the Act on the Residence of Foreigners, this year's balance was 2.5 times higher (compared to 2019, it increased by 1.5 thousand). As in previous years, the highest positive balance was recorded among citizens of Ukraine (13.1 thousand). The second highest was recorded among citizens of Slovakia (2.4 thousand), the third among citizens of Belarus (0.6 thousand). The balance of international migration of Czech citizens was negative (−0.4 thousand).

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Notes:
All data refer to citizens of the Czech Republic and foreigners with permanent residence in the Czech Republic, third-country nationals with temporary residence in the territory of the Czech Republic based on a long-term visa (over 90 days) or a permanent residence permit, nationals of the EU Member States, Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, Liechtenstein and their dependants with notified temporary residence in the territory of the Czech Republic and foreigners with valid asylum status in the Czech Republic. The data contain also information on events (marriages, births, and deaths) of Czech citizens with the permanent residence in the Czech Republic that occurred abroad and were registered by the special registry office in Brno.
All data for 2021 are preliminary.

Responsible manager: Mgr. Robert Šanda, director of Population Statistics Department, tel. +420 274 052 160, e-mail: robert.sanda@czso.cz
Contact person: Mgr. Michaela Němečková, Demographic Statistics Unit, tel. +420 274 052 184, e-mail: michaela.nemeckova@czso.cz
Data source: Demographic statistics – results of processing statistical reports of Obyv series
Divorces – Information system of the Ministry of Justice of the CR
Migration data – Information System of Inhabitants Records (Ministry of the Interior of the CR) and Alien Information System (Directorate of Alien Police)
End of data collection: 6 September 2021
Related publication: 130062-21 Population of the Czech Republic –1st half of 2021
https://www.czso.cz/current-product/41180
Next News Release: 13 December 2021

  •      aoby091321.docx

  • Annex:
  • Table 1 Population and population change (absolute and relative figures, year-to-year changes)
  • Chart 1 Population, quarterly data (numbers)
  • Chart 2 Population change, 1st half-year (numbers)
  • Chart 3 Live births, quarterly data (numbers)
  • Chart 4 Deaths, quarterly data (numbers)
  • Chart 5 Marriages, quarterly data (numbers)
  • Chart 6 Divorces, quarterly data (numbers)
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Published: 13.09.2021
The data are valid as of the release date of the publication.


Contact: Information Services Unit - Headquarters, tel.: +420 274 056 789, email: infoservis@czso.cz