Financial situation and living conditions
There are important connections between financial situation, health and living conditions (Barstad, 2020). A safe financial situation and good living and housing conditions are essential for ensuring good integration. For example, housing conditions such as owning your own home or living spaciously, are linked to more active participation in local volunteering and leisure activities, and to better health (OECD/EU, 2023; Revold and With, 2022). Significant differences in income and living conditions between people with and without immigrant backgrounds can increase the risk of marginalization and prevent immigrants from participating in different social arenas.
People with immigrant backgrounds face several barriers to integration in the form of poor living conditions, persistent low income and unsatisfactory housing conditions, which prevent participation in important arenas (Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion, 2024). Economic growth that contributes to work for all, equitable distribution, universal welfare schemes and good public services are necessary prerequisites for reducing inequality, and for promoting good living conditions for everyone (Ministry of Local Government and Regional Development, 2023).
The interaction between health, labour force participation, educational opportunities and participation in other social arenas is important from an integration perspective. Good health increases opportunities for labour market participation, which is one of the cornerstones of successful integration. The workplace is often an arena for experiencing recognition and mastery, which in turn can have a positive impact on health. On the other hand, barriers to integration such as poor Norwegian language skills or weak sense of belonging to the community, constitute an increased risk of health challenges (Norwegian Institute of Public Health, 2024).
Income
20 per cent lower income
Immigrants have a lower average income than the population as a whole. In 2022, the median income for immigrants was approximately NOK 352,000, compared to NOK 446,000 for the population as a whole. The income disparity between immigrants and the entire population was therefore approximately NOK 94,000, which is an increase compared to 2021, when the difference was NOK 89,000 (Statistics Norway, 2022).
Income levels within the immigrant population vary according to reason for immigration and period of residence. In Figure 5.1, the median income for different immigrant groups is shown as a share of the entire population's median income. In 2022, refugees had a median income of NOK 271,000. This amounts to 61 per cent of the Norwegian population’s median income, a reduction of four percentage points from 2021. Among other things, this reduction is due to the large number of Ukrainian refugees who arrived during 2022 only having resided in Norway forparts the year, and therefore not having been in Norway for a full income year.3 Caution should therefore be exercised when interpreting the change in figures between 2021 and 2022.
Figure 5.1. Median income for immigrants as a proportion of the entire population’s median income, by reason for immigration. 2016–2022. Percentage (Statistics Norway, 2022a).
Figure 5.1 shows a slight decrease in the income disparity between immigrants and the rest of the population during the period 2016–2022. While awaiting new figures from Statistics Norway, it is important to make the proviso that the Norwegian economy was characterised by uncertainty in 2023, which included interest rate hikes, inflation on goods and services, and high numbers of refugee arrivals. It will therefore be of particular interest to monitor the consequences these factors have had for income development in different immigrant groups.
A higher proportion of immigrants receive social assistance than the rest of the population, and in 2023, 69 per cent of such payments were made to immigrants. Refugees have a specific need for social assistance, and the number of recipients is influenced by refugee flows. The proportion of immigrants receiving social assistance decreased from nine per cent in 2017 to seven per cent in 2021. The proportion of people born in Norway to immigrant parents and the rest of the population who receive social assistance is somewhat lower at four and two per cent respectively since 2015 (Kjeka Broen, 2023; Lima, 2024). There was an increase in social assistance payments from 2022 and 2023, and the majority of this increase was due to high numbers of newly arrived Ukrainian refugees (Lima, 2024).
Persistent low income
Immigrants more often experience financial difficulties
How is persistent low income measured?
Low income is defined as income (after tax and adjusted for household size) that is below 60 per cent of the national median income. Persistent low income is defined as having a low income for a period of three years (Epland & Normann, 2021). Low income and persistent low income are often used as indicators of poverty.
In the period 2020–2022, 28 per cent of all immigrants and 27 per cent of people born in Norway to immigrant parents lived in households with persistent low incomes, compared to seven per cent in the rest of the population. The proportion was particularly high among immigrants (35 per cent) and people born in Norway to immigrant parents from Country Group 2 (30 per cent). 19 per cent of immigrants from Country Group 1 live with persistent low incomes, and for people born in Norway to immigrant parents from Country Group 1 this figure is 13 per cent (Statistics Norway, 2024as).
Figure 5.2. People aged 0-39 in households with persistent low-incomes. Three-year period, by immigrant background 2016–2022. Percentage (Statistics Norway, 2024as).
Immigrants more often experience challenges in their financial situation than the rest of the population. The proportion who report that it is difficult or very difficult to make ends meet is three times as high as in the rest of the population, (6 per cent versus 18 per cent) (Statistics Norway, 2024i). Country Group 2 in particular faces challenges related to personal finances. In this group, one in four reports that it is difficult to make ends meet, 13 per cent
report that they cannot afford to go to the dentist, and a total of 44 per cent report that they are unable to manage an unforeseen expense. From 2015 to 2023, the difference in perceived challenges with personal finances and benefits increased somewhat between the immigrant population and the population at large (Statistics Norway, 2024g, 2024h, 2024i).
Figure 5.3. Perceived challenges with access to benefits, financial flexibility and payment difficulties by country of origin. 2023. Percentage (Statistics Norway, 2024g, 2024h, 2024i)
Children in persistent low income households
Immigrant children still heavily overrepresented
For the first time in a decade, a slight decrease in the number of children growing up in persistent low-income households was recorded in 2021. Approximately 110,700 children lived in households with persistent low incomes in 2021, compared to 115,000 the previous year. This figure further decreased to 102,600 children in 2022. This positive development was observed among children both with and without immigrant backgrounds, but children with immigrant backgrounds are still strongly overrepresented. Two out of ten children in Norway have immigrant backgrounds, however among the children who grow up in persistent low-income households, a total of six out of ten have immigrant backgrounds (Normann, 2024).
Figure 5.5 shows that the number of children in persistent low-income households has increased for people with immigrant backgrounds since 2006. This trend reversed in 2021, and in 2022, immigrant children experienced the largest reduction in persistent low income at 3.1 percentage points.
Figure 5.4. Children in households with persistent low incomes by immigrant background. 2022. Figure (Normann, 2024)
While the number of children with immigrant backgrounds living in persistent low income households is at a significantly higher level than in 2006, the proportions have remained relatively stable, and are at approximately the same level as in 2015. Both the number and proportion decreased in 2020, 2021 and 2022. Nevertheless, as shown in Figure 5.5, children with immigrant backgrounds are strongly overrepresented.
Figure 5.5. Children in households with persistent low incomes, proportion with immigrant backgrounds. 2022. Percentage (Norman, 2024)
The decrease in persistent low-incomes may be due to low immigration during the period resulting from, among other things, the lockdown of the country caused by the pandemic.
Low immigration means there will be an increase in the average period of residence and newly arrived refugees are particularly susceptible to having persistent low incomes. Since spring 2022, Norway has accepted a record high number of Ukrainian refugees. This group is not included in the figures of persistent low incomes, because the statistics do not include people who have resided in Norway for less than three years. The Ukrainian refugees who arrived in 2022 will be included in the statistics for the period 2022–2024. With higher prices, interest rate increases and large numbers of arrivals in 2022 and 2023, there is considerable uncertainty about whether the positive developments in the period 2020–2022 will continue. The likelihood of growing up in a persistent low income household varies significantly according to the country of origin of the children’s families and reason for immigration.
Children with refugee backgrounds are particularly susceptible to living in persistent lowincome households. When divided according to country of origin, the proportion living in lowincome
households is highest among children with a background from Syria (74 per cent in 2022). The proportion was also high among children with a background from Somalia (70 per cent) (Normann 2024). In comparison, approximately twelve per cent of children in families with backgrounds from the Philippines, and seven per cent in families with backgrounds from India, live in persistent low-income households (Statistics Norway, 2024ag).
When concerning children with backgrounds from Poland and Lithuania, countries from which there are a high number of labour immigrants, we see a reduction in the proportion of children who grow up in persistent low-income households from around 30 per cent in 2015 to 15 per cent in 2022 (Normann 2024; Statistics Norway, 2024ag).
Household size and composition are closely related to persistent low incomes in families with children and may help explain the differences by country of origin. Children with immigrant backgrounds are slightly more likely than other children to live with a single parent. In addition, children with immigrant backgrounds are more likely to live in large households. The number of labour-market participants in the household and the period of residence in Norway are also factors that impact the families’ income levels (Epland and Normann, 2021).
Poor families with children more often report that they cannot afford a holiday and that they have high housing costs. They also more frequently report that the children do not participate in leisure activities and that the children are in poorer health. There are more low-income families than high-income families with children who report that their children do not attend kindergarten. Children in low-income families are more likely to have lower grades, to not complete upper secondary school, and to end up outside the workforce as adults (Ministry of Children and Families, 2023).
People born in Norway to immigrant parents who grow up in low-income households have a higher rate of graduation and labour-market participation than immigrants and people without immigrant backgrounds in the same situation. This suggests that those born in Norway to immigrant parents are less impacted by growing up in low-income households (Ekren and Grendal, 2021). This in turn suggests that there is high educational and income mobility in this group, something which has been previously described in several studies (Hermansen, 2016; Kirkeberg et al., 2019).
Home ownership status
Immigrants more likely to rent their home
While almost 90 per cent of the non-immigrant population own their home, it is more common among immigrants to rent. In 2023, 38 per cent of immigrants from Country Group 1 rented their home. This proportion has fallen by three percentage points since 2015. 43 per cent of Country Group 2 lived in rented housing. This proportion has increased by three percentage points since 2015 (Statistics Norway, 2023k).
The personal finances of immigrants, reasons for immigration, plans for future establishment in Norway or conditions in the local housing market often determine whether they rent or own their home. Becoming established in the housing market requires a high income level, and immigrants are overrepresented in low-income households. On average, immigrants with the longest periods of residence in Norway have higher incomes than those with shorter periods of residence in Norway. This may be part of the explanation for why the proportion who own their homes increases in line with the period of residence (Normann, 2021). Previous studies also show that labour immigrants are more likely to rent than buy a home, and that this is due to uncertainty regarding how long they will be staying in Norway (Ødegård and Andersen, 2021).
Figure 5.6. Proportion who rent their homes, by immigrant background and place of residence. 2023. Percentage (Statistics Norway, 2023).
Regional differences in the housing market also influence the proportion who rent their home. It is more difficult to enter the housing market in large cities such as Oslo, Bergen or Trondheim. It is therefore not surprising that a relatively higher number of people in these municipalities rent their homes, both among immigrants and the population at large. In the City of Oslo, 46 per cent of immigrants are from Country Group 1. 42 per cent of immigrants are from Country Group 2, compared to 21 per cent in the rest of the population (Statistics Norway, 2023k).
Living conditions
One in five immigrants have cramped living conditions
What are cramped living conditions?
Households are considered cramped if the following two conditions are met:
1. The number of rooms in the dwelling is less than the number of people or if one person lives in one room.
2. The size of the dwelling (the “per person floor space”) amounts to less than 25 square metres per person (Statistics Norway).
Immigrants generally live in more cramped conditions than the rest of the population There is also significant variation between different immigrant groups. In 2023, 15 per cent of immigrants from Country Group 1 and 27 per cent from Country Group 2 had cramped living conditions. The proportion of people in the rest of the population living in cramped conditions was much lower, and amounted to eight per cent. In addition, Figure 5.7 shows that there has been a slight reduction in the differences in cramped living conditions since 2015 (Statistics
Norway, 2024al).
Figure 5.7. Proportion living in cramped conditions, by immigrant background. 2015–2023. Percentage (Statistics Norway, 2024al).
The proportion with cramped living conditions is higher among refugees and those who arrived in Norway through family reunification and lower among labour immigrants and immigrants from Nordic countries. This means that cramped living conditions are associated with the reason for immigration. Larger households and low-income households more often have cramped living conditions, and younger people more often live in cramped conditions than older people. Cramped living conditions decrease slightly in relation to period of residence (Arnesen, 2020).
If we look at housing type, immigrants are less likely to live in detached housing than the rest of the population. This is particularly true for immigrants from Country Group 2. In this group, 32 per cent lived in detached housing in 2023, compared to 48 per cent of immigrants from Country Group 1. In the rest of the population, 57 per cent lived in detached housing in 2023. Correspondingly, the proportion of immigrants from Country Group 2 who lived in blocks of flats was twice as high as for the rest of the population (36 per cent vs 19 per cent). In Country Group 1, 24 per cent lived in blocks of flats (Statistics Norway, 2023l).
Physical health
Immigrants have higher life expectancy
There are significant differences when it comes to health in different immigrant groups. Their health status varies according to gender, age, country of origin, reason for immigration and period of residence in Norway (Texmon and Thonstad, 2024). According to the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, refugees and older immigrants may be particularly susceptible to poor health (Spilker et al., 2022).
Immigrants are often in better physical health than the population at large when they come to Norway. Among the reasons for this is the “healthy immigrant effect”.4 However, the health of immigrants deteriorates the longer they reside in Norway This may be due to the fact that, on average, immigrants have poorer living and housing conditions, lower incomes and possibly poorer physical and psychosocial working environments than the rest of the population (Dzamarija, 2022).
Figure 5.8 shows the proportion of immigrants, people born in Norway to immigrant parents and people without immigrant backgrounds, broken down by age, who consider their own health to be good or very good.
Figure 5.8. Proportion who consider their own health to be good or very good, by age and immigration category. Average from the quality of life survey. 2020–2023. Percentage (Texmon and Thonstad, 2024)
There are minor differences between the three aforementioned groups in the average
assessment of own health. The exception is among people aged 50-64. While only 60 per
cent of immigrants in this age group consider their own health to be good or very good, the
corresponding proportion among people without immigrant backgrounds is 69 per cent
(Texmon and Thonstad, 2024). More knowledge is required about why immigrants consider
their health to deteriorate with age, while the opposite is true for people without an
immigrant background, however a possible explanation could be that the immigrant
population has, on average, poorer living conditions (Dzamarija, 2022; Texmon and
Thonstad, 2024).
The average use of health services such as general practitioner or emergency room is lower among immigrants than in the general population. 63 per cent of immigrants had at least one consultation with their general practitioner during 2023, compared to 74 per cent in the population without an immigrant background. The use of general practitioners varies significantly according to an immigrant’s country of origin. Immigrants from countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America and Oceania (other than Australia and New Zealand) use general practitioner services more often than other immigrant groups. Other factors that affect the number of general practitioner visits are age, gender and period of residence in Norway (Lunde and Texmon, 2013).
Figure 5.9. General practitioner consultations, by country of origin. 2023. Percentage (Statistics Norway, 2024ae, 2024af).
More knowledge is required about the extent to which the differences described above arise due to barriers to access to health services among immigrants and their Norwegian-born children. Examples of such barriers may include lack of information about health and care services, language barriers, financial challenges, inadequate knowledge of diversity among employees and perceived discrimination (Spilker et al. 2022).
On average, immigrants in Norway have lower mortality rates and higher life expectancy than the population without immigrant backgrounds (Wallace et al. 2022). For example, in 2019, immigrant women had almost two years higher life expectancy at birth than Norwegian-born women, while immigrant men had just over one year higher life expectancy than Norwegian-born men (Spilker et al. 2022). As shown in Figure 5.10, the mortality rate among immigrants aged 50 to 69 in the period 2018–2022 was 87 per cent relative to the rest of the population (Texmon and Thonstad, 2024). The mortality rate is calculated based on death rates, which is the number of deaths during a period per 1,000 people (Texmon and Thonstad, 2024).
Figure 5.10. Relative mortality rates for immigrants aged 50-69, by country of origin. Rest of the population = 100. 2018–2022. Percentage (Texmon and Thonstad, 2024)
At the same time, the mortality rate varies between different immigrant groups. Among other things, it appears as if country of origin, reason for immigration and period of residence provide some explanation for the mortality rates. Immigrants who have come to Norway for work or to study have lower mortality rates than refugees (Dzamarija, 2022). The mortality rate also increases in line with period of residence and is highest among immigrants who have lived more than 40 per cent of their lives in Norway, i.e. the longer the immigrants have lived in Norway, the more similar they become to the rest of the population (Dzamarija and Syse, 2016).
Mental health
Mental health problems most common among immigrants
Immigrants generally have poorer mental health than the general population. According to the 2016 living conditions survey of the immigrant population, the proportion who experienced mental health problems was twice as high among immigrants as in the entire population – twelve versus six percent (Vrålstad and Wiggen, 2017). The proportion who report mental health problems varies according to country of origin. While just over one in five immigrants from Iran and Iraq report mental health problems, the proportion of Somali immigrants who report having mental health problems is equal to the proportion in the population as a whole (six per cent) (Vrålstad and Wiggen, 2017).
Figure 5.11. Proportion with mental health problems. 2017. Percentage (Vrålstad and Wiggen, 2017)
On average, immigrants with a high level of education and high incomes have better mental health than other immigrants (Spilker et al. 2022). There is also a correlation between discrimination and health outcomes, whereby perceived discrimination is associated with poorer mental health and other health problems (Spilker et al. 2022). For example, immigrants who have experienced discrimination in different arenas are twice as likely to suffer from mental health problems as those who have not experienced discrimination (Kjøllesdal et al. 2019).
However, when it comes to self-assessed mental health there are small differences between immigrants and the rest of the population. While 33 per cent of immigrants have a high level of satisfaction with their own mental health, this applies to 30 per cent in the rest of the population6 (Statistics Norway, 2023b).
International research shows that refugees – both adults and children – on average have more mental health problems than other immigrant groups (Blackmore et al. 2020). While 16 to 19 per cent of adult refugees in Norway visit their general practitioner due to mental health problems, the corresponding figure for the rest of the population is 10 to 12 per cent (Straiton, Reneflot and Diaz, 2017). Both more and updated knowledge are required about the extent of and mechanisms behind mental health among immigrants in Norway.
Quality of Life
Immigrants from Asia and Africa have the lowest quality of life
Quality of life is a comprehensive term and relates to subjective opinions of how satisfied someone is with their own life situation and everyday life. Quality of life is closely associated with living conditions and health, and is measured using a number of indicators such as satisfaction with life, meaning and mastery, as well as the absence of mental health problems and negative emotions.
Statistics Norway’s quality of life survey shows that, on average, the immigrant population has about the same self-assessed quality of life as the rest of the population.7 27 per cent of immigrants reported low satisfaction with life in 2023, compared to 25 per cent in the rest of the population (Statistics Norway, 2023b). At the same time, the survey shows major differences in perceived quality of life between immigrants from different regions of the world. Immigrants from the Middle East, Central Asia and South Asia are the least satisfied with their lives. In this group, 37 percent had low satisfaction in 2022. The highest quality of life is found among immigrants from American and Western European countries, of whom 18 per cent are not satisfied with their lives (Dalen and Larsson, 2022).
Figure 5.12. Proportion with low satisfaction with life, by country of origin. 2020–2023. Percentage (Statistics Norway, 2023b).
In addition to country of origin, factors such as low income, unemployment and disability are associated with poorer quality of life. This applies to people both with and without immigrant backgrounds. Young people and people who live alone are also among the groups that are more susceptible to poorer quality of life (Dalen and Larsson, 2022).
Figure 5.13. Proportion of people with a predominance of negative emotions. 2020–2023. Percentage (Statistics Norway, 2023o).
While the survey does not reveal clear differences between immigrants and the rest of the population in terms of quality of life, immigrants more often report having a predominance of negative emotions, such as being worried, anxious, lonely or stressed. Among immigrants, this proportion increased from 23 per cent in 2020 to 27 per cent in 2022, and decreased to 24 per cent in 2023. In the rest of the population, this proportion increased from 17 per cent to 19 per cent during the same period. Immigrants from Country Group 2 have the highest proportion with a predominance of negative emotions, followed by immigrants from Country Group 1 (Statistics Norway, 2023o).