The uptick in immigration to Germany has been staggering, growing by almost 60 percent between 2003 and 2013. In 2013 alone, more than 1.2 million people moved to the country, which has a total population of 80.8 million people. Net immigration — the difference between those who arrive and those who leave — was around 428,000 people. This is almost four times higher than the 2003 level. According to Destatis, Germany's official statistics office, there are roughly 7 million foreigners living in Germany, or around 8.7 percent of the population. This is above the EU average of 6.5 percent. The number of people with an immigration background — those who have migrated to Germany since the 1950s and their descendants — is over 16 million people, making up roughly 20 percent of Germany's population.