Releasing the latest figures for the year to June 2024, NRS said the country’s population was now estimated to be 5,546,900. 

The population grew by 0.7% or 40,900 people in a year. Deaths outnumbered births in all but one of Scotland’s 32 council areas. The population growth was largely driven by more people moving to Scotland than leaving. The population grew in most council areas, and it fell in five council areas. 

Andrew White, head of population and migration statistics at NRS, said: “We can now say that Scotland’s population passed the 5.5 million mark for the first time in 2023. This was driven by people moving to Scotland. 

“The population increased further in the year to mid-2024. In every council area, more people moved in than left in the latest figures. Midlothian was the only council area to see more births than deaths in the year to June 2024. It is one of the fastest growing areas of Scotland alongside Glasgow, Edinburgh, East Lothian and West Lothian. 

“The areas with declining populations are Argyll and Bute, Angus, Dundee, Na h-Eileanan Siar and Dumfries and Galloway. These areas haven’t seen enough people moving in to make up for the gap between deaths and births.”

The change to the mid-year population estimate for 2023 reflects the methodology used by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) to calculate long-term international migration. It is routine for ONS to revise its long-term international migration estimates over time as more data become available. The estimated population of Scotland in mid-2023 was 5,506,000, putting it over five and a half million for the first time. 

Welcoming the report, equalities minister Kaukab Stewart said: “The latest figure demonstrates the continuing appeal of Scotland as an attractive country for people to live, work, study and settle in. We welcome people from around the world and other parts of the UK who want to build their lives here, and it is notable that more people have again moved to Scotland from the rest of the UK than have moved the other way.

“Scotland is a fantastic place to live and work, with policies not in place anywhere else in the UK like free tuition, free prescriptions and the Scottish Child Payment.  And the majority of taxpayers in Scotland pay less income tax than elsewhere in the UK.

“However, this release also shows that our population growth continues to rely on positive net migration. This shows just how crucial immigration is to ensuring Scotland has a greater proportion of working-age people to fill skills gaps, sustain public services, contribute to communities, and grow the economy.

“To enable us to address our demographic challenges, migration policies must be tailored to Scotland’s distinct needs. We will continue to press the UK Government to work with us on the introduction of tailored migration routes for Scotland, including a Scottish Graduate Visa, to help us retain capable people from around the world, and to deliver a Rural Visa Pilot tailored to the needs of our rural and island communities.

“Within our devolved powers, we have launched Scotland’s Migration Service, to help individuals and businesses navigate the immigration system, while our Addressing Depopulation Action Plan is supporting local initiatives to help communities facing population decline.”