OREANDA-NEWS. In 2014, flows of money sent by residents of the European Union (EU) to a non-EU country, referred to as personal transfers, amounted to €29.3 billion, compared with €28.7 bn in 2013. As inflows to the EU totalled €11.0 bn in 2014, this resulted in a negative balance (-€18.3 bn) for the EU with the rest of the world. The majority of personal transfers consist of flows of money sent by migrants to their country of origin.

Largest surplus in personal transfers in Portugal, largest deficit in France

Among Member States for which data are published, the outflows of personal transfers in 2014 were highest from France (€9.4 bn), followed by the United Kingdom (€6.8 bn), Italy (€6.5 bn) and Spain (€5.9 bn - see country note). In contrast, the highest inflows were recorded in Portugal (€4.8 bn), ahead of Poland (€2.8 bn), the United Kingdom (€2.4 bn), Italy (€2.1 bn) and Romania (€2.0 bn). As a result, the largest surpluses in personal transfers were registered in 2014 in Portugal (+€3.6 bn), Poland (+€2.6 bn) and Romania (+€1.6 bn), while France (-€8.9 bn) recorded by far the largest deficit, followed by Italy (-€4.5 bn), the United Kingdom (-€4.4 bn) and Germany (-€3.5 bn).

Highest proportion of intra-EU outflows in Slovakia, of extra-EU outflows in Greece

In 2014, the highest share of inflows from other EU Member States among total inflows were recorded in Slovakia (99%), Luxembourg and Hungary (both 96%) and Poland (88%). On the contrary, extra-EU inflows accounted for at least 70% of total inflows in France (74%), Germany and Greece (both 70%). Slovakia (95%), Luxembourg (91%), Ireland (80%) and the Czech Republic (78%) were the Member States that recorded the highest proportion of intra-EU outflows in total outflows. For extra-EU outflows, the largest share was observed in Greece (89%), Slovenia (86%), Spain (85% - see country note), Sweden (74%) and Italy (73%).