In the EU27, money sent by migrants to their country of origin, usually referred to as workers' remittances, had registered a constant increase over recent years. This trend has been interrupted by the economic crisis. Total EU27 outflows amounted to 30.3 billion euro in 2009, compared with 32.6 bn in 2008 (-7%). These figures include both intra-EU27 and extra-EU27 flows. The decrease in workers' remittances in 2009 compared with 2008 was almost the same for extra-EU27 flows (-7%) and for intra-EU27 flows (-6%). The share of extra-EU27 remittances in the total stood at 73% in 2009, the same level as in 2008.

The outflow of workers' remittances was highest in 2009 in Spain (7.1 bn euro or 22% of total EU27 remittances), Italy (6.8 bn or 21%), Germany (3.0 bn or 9%), France (2.8 bn or 9%) and the Netherlands (1.5 bn or 5%).

In 2009, the majority of Member States recorded decreases in the outflow of workers' remittances compared with 2008, with the highest falls observed in Spain (from 7.9 bn euro to 7.1 bn) and France (from 3.4 bn to 2.8 bn), and the largest increase in Italy (from 6.4 bn to 6.8 bn).

This News Release, issued by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, presents data collected within the framework of Balance of Payments statistics.