Population change - Demographic balance and crude rates at national level (demo_gind)

1.1. Contact organisation

Statistics Belgium

1.2. Contact organisation unit

Thematic Direction Society

1.3. Contact name

Confidential because of GDPR

1.4. Contact person function

Confidential because of GDPR

1.5. Contact mail address

Koning Albert II-laan 16 - 1000 Brussel

1.6. Contact email address

Confidential because of GDPR

1.7. Contact phone number

Confidential because of GDPR

1.8. Contact fax number

Confidential because of GDPR

2.1. Metadata last certified

24 June 2024

2.2. Metadata last posted

24 June 2024

2.3. Metadata last update

23 June 2025

3.1. Data description

First results on the main demographic developments in the reference year (number of births, deaths, immigrants and emigrants).
First estimate on the population size on 31/12/YYYY = the population size on 01/01/(YYYY+1).

3.2. Classification system

Not applicable.

3.3. Coverage - sector

Not applicable.

3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions

3.4.1 Please indicate the definition of:
Population				The mother's residence				The data deaths
1.Usual Residence Population	2.Legal Residence Population	3.Registered Residence Population	4.Other	1.Usual Residence Population	2.Legal Residence Population	3.Registered Residence Population	4.Other	1.Usual Residence Population	2.Legal Residence Population	3.Registered Residence Population	4.Other
X						X				x

 

3.4.2 Please describe the national definition of
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants
Population registered in the Central Population Register (CPR)	Births of children registerd in the CPR (or their mothers)	Deaths of persons registerd in the CPR	First-time registrations and reregistration (absence >= 1 year) in the CPR	deregistrations from the CPR

 

3.4.3 Please provide details of the deviations of the  national definition used from the usual residence definition.
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants
Asylum seekers not included in national definition and no appication of the 12 months duration criterium.	see 'population'	see 'population'	see 'population'	see 'population'

3.5. Statistical unit

Number of persons.

3.6. Statistical population

In case of survey as data source, please describe the target statistical population (one or more) which the data set refers to
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants

 Not applicable

3.7. Reference area

Data are available at national level and all underlying geographical units

3.8. Coverage - Time

Not applicable.

3.9. Base period

Not applicable.

Number of persons.

Population size: the refence date is 31/12/Year (=01/01/(Year+1)).
Vital events (births & deaths): the reference period is the Year during which the vital event took place.
Migration flow (immigrantions and emigrations): the reference period is the Year during which the international migration took place.

6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements

Royal Decree of 26 August 1966 on annual statistics on births, deaths, marriages, divorces, recognitions, legitimations, adoptions, immigration and emigration.

6.2. Institutional Mandate - data sharing

Not applicable.

7.1. Confidentiality - policy

Law of 4 July 1962 on official statistics (amended by the Act of 1 August 1985 on tax and other measures, the Act of 21 December 1994 on social and other provisions, the Law of 2 January 2001 on social provisions, Budget and miscellaneous and by the program law of 22 December 2008)

7.2. Confidentiality - data treatment

In accordance with the law of 4 July 1962 on official statistics

8.1. Release calendar

Yearly.
Publication of the population size and dynamics according to the Belgian population definition, during the course of June.
The release calendar is publicly available on our national website.

The population size and dynamics according to the Usual Resident population are not published on our national website, they are solely provided to Eurostat.

8.2. Release calendar access

Release Schedule | Statbel

Note: population according to the Belgian population definition.

8.3. Release policy - user access

The release policy of statistics Belgium: the population statistics are dessimanted to all users at the same time.

The release date is publicaly available in the release calendar on our website: Release Schedule | Statbel.

 Note: population according to the Belgian population definition.

 

 

Yearly.

10.1. Dissemination format - News release

Mid-June:
- The population stock (including structural characteristics of the population).
- The population dynamics.

Note: population according to the Belgian population definition.

10.2. Dissemination format - Publications

Mid-June:
Population size and the population structure: Structure of the Population | Statbel
Population dynamics: Population movement | Statbel

Note: population according to the Belgian population definition.

10.3. Dissemination format - online database

Mid-June:

To create your own table:
be.STAT
Population and population mobility.

 

Open data:
Open Data | Statbel
Population, Births and population structure.
Number of deaths per day, sex, age, region, province, district | Statbel
Deaths

Note: population according to the Belgian population definition.

10.4. Dissemination format - microdata access

Microdata for research | Statbel

Note: population according to the Belgian population definition.

10.5. Dissemination format - other

Not applicable.

10.6. Documentation on methodology

Please provide a link to national methodology reports and reference metadata files available on-line concerning the supplied data.
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants	Net migration
Structure of the population	Births and fertility	Mortality	Migration	Migration	Migration | Statbel

10.7. Quality management - documentation

Not available

11.1. Quality assurance

All the statistical validation process is oriented towards the assurance of quality (internal cohernce controls, cross-checks when available...)

11.2. Quality management - assessment

Not yet available

12.1. Relevance - User Needs

Many institutionnal and private users with their specific needs: Federal Plan Bureau for Population projections, National Bank for the national accounts, Universities for scientific analyses, business groups for marketing,...

12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction

Follow-up of the demands and reporting about web-site consultations

12.3. Completeness

Constant efforts are made to extend the population statistics provided 

13.1. Accuracy - overall

Please report on the reasons for any unreliability of the data on:
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants	Net migration
possible small underestimation due to delay in the registration - remaining small over or under estimation of the number of asylumseekers - illegal population not taken in consideration.	see 'population'	see 'population'	see 'population'	see 'population'	see 'population'

13.2. Sampling error

In case of survey as data source, please provide information on the part of the difference between a population value and an estimate thereof, derived from a random sample, which is due to the fact that only a subset of the population is enumerated.
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants
Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable

13.3. Non-sampling error

In case of survey as data source, please provide information on the error in survey estimates which cannot be attributed to sampling fluctuations.
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants
Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable	Not applicable

14.1. Timeliness

Available within 6 months after the reference date.

14.2. Punctuality

punctuality = 100% 

15.1. Comparability - geographical

Completely comparable

15.2. Comparability - over time

Please provide information on the length of comparable time series (indicate the first reference year for which data are availble), reference periods at which series occur, the reasons for the breaks and treatments of them.
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants
before 2010 -  exclusion of asylum seekers	before 2010 -  exclusion of asylum seekers	before 2010 -  exclusion of asylum seekers	before 2010 -  exclusion of asylum seekers	before 2010 -  exclusion of asylum seekers

15.3. Coherence - cross domain

For natural movement, 99% of coherence between Population National Register and civil registration.

For migration movement, Population National Register is the only source.

For Population also.

15.4. Coherence - internal

Calculation of population and migrations are completely integrated in one program - assuring coherence

Not available

17.1. Data revision - policy

No revision policy - usual resident population preliminary data are not disseminated on our national website.

On our website we only publish data according to the Belgian population definition.

17.2. Data revision - practice

Not applicable

18.1. Source data

Please report on the data sources used for the first reference year and inform of any changes thereto,  to produce:
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants
Central population register	Central population register	Central population register	Central population register	Central population register

18.2. Frequency of data collection

Yearly for Statistics Belgium, but continue data collection for the National Register

18.3. Data collection

Data collected at the municipality level, harmonised and gathered at the national level.

18.4. Data validation

Selection of the pertinent cases (persons registered, livebirths, deaths...), coherence controls for each variable available, compilation of new variables, agregation in household units and agregation in geographical units.

18.5. Data compilation

Linkage with civil registration to guaranty the completness of natural movement data and editing of all the cases included in the statistical adjustement. 

18.6. Adjustment

The Belgian population register 'suffers' from a limited number of shortcoming mainly late registrations. This results in a statistical adjustment of several of thousand persons - however on a population totaling more than 11.000.000 persons. There is scientifical agreement in Belgium that this is a acceptabel bias.      

No additional comment.

First results on the main demographic developments in the reference year (number of births, deaths, immigrants and emigrants).
First estimate on the population size on 31/12/YYYY = the population size on 01/01/(YYYY+1).

23 June 2025

3.4.1 Please indicate the definition of:
Population				The mother's residence				The data deaths
1.Usual Residence Population	2.Legal Residence Population	3.Registered Residence Population	4.Other	1.Usual Residence Population	2.Legal Residence Population	3.Registered Residence Population	4.Other	1.Usual Residence Population	2.Legal Residence Population	3.Registered Residence Population	4.Other
X						X				x

 

3.4.2 Please describe the national definition of
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants
Population registered in the Central Population Register (CPR)	Births of children registerd in the CPR (or their mothers)	Deaths of persons registerd in the CPR	First-time registrations and reregistration (absence >= 1 year) in the CPR	deregistrations from the CPR

 

3.4.3 Please provide details of the deviations of the  national definition used from the usual residence definition.
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants
Asylum seekers not included in national definition and no appication of the 12 months duration criterium.	see 'population'	see 'population'	see 'population'	see 'population'

Number of persons.

In case of survey as data source, please describe the target statistical population (one or more) which the data set refers to
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants

 Not applicable

Data are available at national level and all underlying geographical units

Population size: the refence date is 31/12/Year (=01/01/(Year+1)).
Vital events (births & deaths): the reference period is the Year during which the vital event took place.
Migration flow (immigrantions and emigrations): the reference period is the Year during which the international migration took place.

Please report on the reasons for any unreliability of the data on:
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants	Net migration
possible small underestimation due to delay in the registration - remaining small over or under estimation of the number of asylumseekers - illegal population not taken in consideration.	see 'population'	see 'population'	see 'population'	see 'population'	see 'population'

Number of persons.

Linkage with civil registration to guaranty the completness of natural movement data and editing of all the cases included in the statistical adjustement. 

Please report on the data sources used for the first reference year and inform of any changes thereto,  to produce:
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants
Central population register	Central population register	Central population register	Central population register	Central population register

Yearly.

Available within 6 months after the reference date.

Completely comparable

Please provide information on the length of comparable time series (indicate the first reference year for which data are availble), reference periods at which series occur, the reasons for the breaks and treatments of them.
Population	Live births	Deaths	Immigrants	Emigrants
before 2010 -  exclusion of asylum seekers	before 2010 -  exclusion of asylum seekers	before 2010 -  exclusion of asylum seekers	before 2010 -  exclusion of asylum seekers	before 2010 -  exclusion of asylum seekers