- Immigrant Times
- Oct 16
- 8 min read
Updated: Oct 26
Immigration has made South America the most diverse region in the world
While many South American countries have long embraced immigration, xenophobia and integration hurdles persist
By The Immigrant Times
Immigrants from the Middle East in Brazil; Venezuelan migrants on their way to Colombia; Italian immigrants celebrate in Argentina
August 2025: South America has a long and multifaceted history of immigration, driven by colonialism, economic factors, as well as social and political upheavals in Europe and the Middle East. No region reflects the power of migration like South America, where waves of immigration have created an unmatched cultural and social mosaic.
The early Spanish and Portuguese settlers in South America arrived following the voyages of exploration in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Spain focused on colonising vast territories, including Mexico and much of Central and South America, while Portugal's primary South American colony was Brazil. These colonisations resulted in significant cultural and societal changes, including the introduction of European languages (Spanish and Portuguese), religion (Christianity), and economic systems (plantation agriculture, mining).
In the 19th and early 20th century, South American countries sought and encouraged large-scale immigration from European countries such as Italy, Spain and Portugal. At that time, South American nations were desperate to explore the riches the continent offered, but were short of people. The governments and the Catholic Church also hoped immigration would lead to an ’Europeanisation’ of the population and spread Christianity.
In recent decades, South America has witnessed an acceleration of immigration from Africa and Asia. Often, these individuals are viewing the region as a transit point in their desire to reach North America.
Immigrants in South America, especially those in irregular status, often face challenges like exploitation, discrimination, difficulties in accessing social services and legal pathways to formal employment. While some countries have historically been more welcoming to immigrants, xenophobia and difficulties in integration persist, particularly for those from outside the immediate region with different cultural and linguistic backgrounds.
Countries like Brazil have adopted welcoming policies towards Venezuelan refugees, while others like Chile have recently implemented more restrictive immigration reforms. Organisations like Mercosur and the Andean Community have facilitated free movement within the region, potentially promoting intra-regional migration.
Immigrants in South America contribute to the workforce, often filling undesirable jobs and boosting local demand for goods and services. Studies show these contributions outweigh the costs of providing services to immigrants. Remittances sent by migrants to their home countries are a vital source of income for many families and can represent a significant portion of the GDP in countries like El Salvador and Honduras. Immigration, particularly of younger individuals, helps offset the effects of ageing populations in some South American countries.
South American countries with the largest numbers of immigrants
Colombia: 3.1 million immigrants; 5.8% of the population
Argentina: 2.3 million immigrants; 5.1% of the population
Chile: 1.6 million immigrants; 8.3% of the population
Venezuela: 1.3 million immigrants; 4.7% of the population
Peru: 1.2 million immigrants; 3.7% of the population
Brazil: 1.3 million immigrants; 0.6% of the population
Ecuador: 0.43 million immigrants; 2.3% of the population
Immigration in South American countries
Argentina
Argentina experienced massive European immigration between the late 19th and early 20th centuries, especially from Italy and Spain, encouraged by policies promoting European settlement. Jewish immigration was also significant, with Argentina hosting one of the largest Jewish communities in Latin America. Immigration from neighbouring South American countries increased in the 20th and 21st centuries, especially due to economic and political instability in the region.
Countries of origin of immigrants in Argentina (2022 data)
Arrivals from Paraguay: 523,000
Arrivals from Bolivia: 338,000
Arrivals from Venezuela: 162,000
Arrivals from Peru: 156,000
Arrivals from Chile: 149,000
Arrivals from Uruguay: 95,000
Arrivals from Italy: 68,000
Arrivals from Brazil: 50,000
Arrivals from Spain: 49,000
Arrivals from Colombia: 47,000
Since the economic collapse in Venezuela, Argentina has seen a surge of immigration from that country. Hyperinflation, insecurity, and lack of basic services have driven millions to flee. Many Venezuelans view Argentina as a place with better opportunities, despite Argentina’s economic challenges. Argentina’s migration laws are also relatively welcoming, recognising migration as a human right and offering access to work, healthcare, and education.
Argentina under President Javier Milei has tightened immigration into the country since he took office in December 2023. His administration has restricted asylum in Argentina, and a ‘Trumpian’ executive order issued in May 2025 limits permanent residency and citizenship as well as migrants’ access to public healthcare and education, while widening the grounds for deportation.
Measures include:
• Marriage no longer secures immediate citizenship
• Children born in Argentina do not automatically acquire citizenship
• However, citizenship is possible with a minimum investment of US$500,000, even without physical citizenship
Colombia
Over the last few years, Colombia has received a significant number of immigrants, mostly from Venezuela. Despite becoming an emigration country since the last century, the departure of millions of Colombians from their homeland has also been balanced by the arrival of many foreigners to the country. Historically, the current Colombian population is mostly descended from waves of people over centuries who migrated from the Mediterranean (Spaniards, Italians, Lebanese, etc.) and mixed with local Indigenous populations as well as Africans brought as slaves. Up until the 2000s, the number of foreigners remained below 100,000 individuals, but by the end of 2024 stood at over three million people.
Venezuelans are by far the largest immigrant and foreign community living in Colombia. According to Colombia’s migratory authority, as of December 2024, there were 2,800,000 Venezuelans registered in the country. Historically, it was Colombians who immigrated en masse to Venezuela during its golden age in the second half of the 20th century. After the economic and political crisis that struck the country starting in 2016, millions of Venezuelans fled to Colombia to find economic opportunities or simply to survive.
Colombia remains the main recipient country of the Venezuelan diaspora, estimated at 7.7 million nationals who have left their homeland in search of better living conditions. After Colombia, Peru is the second-largest host country with 1.5 million migrants, followed by Brazil with 502,000 and Ecuador with 438,000 Venezuelans, according to UNHCR.
Chile
In the 19th and early 20th centuries, Chile welcomed European immigrants from Spain, Germany, Italy, Croatia, and other countries. More recently, migration has shifted toward Latin American neighbours and Caribbean nations, especially since the 1990s.
Venezuela, Colombia and Peru were the top three nationalities of newcomers granted temporary residence in 2022. Among the top 15 countries of origin, Venezuela registered the strongest increase (+66,000) in temporary flows to Chile compared to the previous year.
In 2023, the number of first asylum applicants decreased by 28%, to reach around 3,600. The majority of applicants came from Venezuela (2,300), Colombia (800) and Cuba (200). The largest increase since 2022 concerned nationals of Cuba (29), and the largest decrease concerned nationals of Venezuela (‑1,200).
Countries of origin of immigrants in Chile (2020 data)
Arrivals from Venezuela: 700,000
Arrivals from Peru: 235,000
Arrivals from Haiti: 186,000
Arrivals from Colombia: 161,000
Arrivals from Bolivia:: 120,000
Arrivals from Argentina: 79,000
Arrivals from Ecuador: 39,000
New reforms, in particular Law 21,325, enacted in April 2021, could tighten immigration by making it harder to obtain a residence permit from inside the country and allowing authorities to turn back people caught crossing the border without authorisation, but it is so far unclear what impact it will have over the long term.
On 5 February 2024, a new law came into effect that modifies the conditions to be considered a refugee, and the removal and return procedures for irregular entries. Under the new regulation, only migrants who come directly from the territory where their life and liberty are threatened would be considered refugees. Grounds for removal were also extended to cover irregular entries within 10km of the border, among other modifications. This new law increases the possibility of deportation and grounds for denying the granting of asylum status.
Venezuela
While Venezuela is now known for its emigration crisis, it was historically a major destination for immigrants. After World War II, there was a large influx of immigrants from war-torn Europe, including countries like Germany, Italy, Spain and Portugal. Tens of thousands of migrants also came from Lebanon, Syria and Palestine.
The outflow of refugees and migrants from Venezuela is the largest displacement crisis in the world, with almost 7.7 million migrants and refugees as of August 2023. This is an even greater number than the displacement of Syrians or Ukrainians outside of their countries. Despite these numbers, the Venezuelan migrant and refugee crisis, quite unfortunately, has fallen down the list of political and policy priorities, with fewer headlines in the media and sporadic policy conversations in Washington.
Peru
Roughly four per cent of Peru’s 33 million people are immigrants.
Peru has become one of the top destinations for migrants in South America, especially in recent years.
As a result of the exodus triggered by the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela, Peru is now the country to have received the second-largest number of Venezuelan migrants. As of May 2022, Peru had received around 1.3 million migrants from Venezuela. Peru’s response to Venezuelan migration has focused on equal protection, but access to healthcare, employment, and social services remains uneven.
Brazil
Brazil has a rich and complex immigration history, shaped by waves of migration from Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and neighbouring Latin American countries in the 19th and 20th centuries. Between 1870 and 1930, Brazil welcomed two to three million immigrants, mainly from Portugal, Italy, Spain, Germany, Lebanon and Syria and Japan
There are an estimated 1.8 million Brazilians whose families originate from Portugal, with a further 1.7 million with Italian ancestral roots. Large groups of Spanish and German immigrants settled in southern Brazil. The country is also home to the largest Japanese diaspora (250,0000 in the world.
Today, Brazil has one of the lowest immigrant-to-population ratios in South America, despite its large size and multicultural legacy. The country is home to some 1.3 million immigrants, representing 0.6 per cent of the population.
Countries of origin of immigrants in Brazil
From Venezuela 526,000
Arrivals from Haiti 181,000
Arrivals from Bolivia 172,000
Arrivals from Colombia 98,000
Arrivals from Argentina 95,000
Arrivals from the US 92,000
Arrivals from China 72,000
Arrivals from Paraguay 61,000
Arrivals from Peru 57,000
Arrivals from Uruguay 57,000
Arrivals from Cuba 50,000
Arrivals from France 49,000
Arrivals from Germany 43,000
Arrivals from Italy 43,000
Arrivals from Spain 35,000
Arrivals from Japan 31,000
Arrivals from Angola 29,000
Arrivals from the UK 26,000
Immigration laws
Brazil promotes cultural diversity and offers permanent residence after four years of legal stay. Citizens from neighbouring countries (e.g., Mercosur members) can enter visa-free, easing regional migration.
A foreigner with a permanent resident visa has nearly all of the same rights as a Brazilian citizen, such as access to health and education services in Brazil, in addition to being able to open a business, bank account, and obtain a driver's license, among others. However, a permanent resident cannot vote or be elected to political office, and can only exercise these two rights after Brazilian naturalisation.
Ecuador
According to the 2022 Census, Ecuador is home to some 425,000 immigrants, representing 2.3 per cent of the country’s population. Refugees from Venezuela (232,000) and immigrants from Colombia (98,000) from the two largest groups of immigrants. Others come from Spain (21,000), Peru (15,000), the US (14,000) and Cuba (11,000).
Ecuador’s Organic Law on Human Mobility, enacted in February 2017, is a landmark legal framework that governs the rights and responsibilities of all people on the move—immigrants, emigrants, refugees, asylum seekers, stateless persons, and victims of trafficking.
Key principles of the law
• Equal rights regardless of migratory status: Foreign nationals are guaranteed the same rights and duties as Ecuadorian citizens.
• Non-criminalisation of irregular migration: No person is deemed ‘illegal based on migratory status.
• Right to migrate: Migration is recognised as a human right.
• Protection against refoulement: Individuals cannot be returned to countries where their life or rights are at risk.
• Access to identification: Refugees and residents are entitled to national ID cards (cédulas).
It includes 146 articles, plus general and transitory provisions. Regulations were signed into effect by President Lenín Moreno in August 2017.
Methodology: The research was conducted by The Immigrant Times in August 2025.
Sources: OECD; United Nations Development Programme; World Population Review; Colombia One; Migration Policy Institute; Centre for Strategic and International Studies; Latina Republic; Latin American Bureau
Immigration in South America is part of The Immigrant Times’ Open Research Project. Please contact the Editor if you wish to suggest changes or additions.
Further reading: Latin American immigrants in the US (Remittances) || Immigrants create Wealth | News from South America |
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