Number of French people in Brussels doubled in twenty years
The French population in Brussels is young and developed. This is evident from research by the ULB. Compared to 2000, there were twice as many French people living in the region last year.
ULB researchers Charlotte Casier and Jean-Michel Decroly have examined the French population in Brussels using various sources. “The study paints a portrait of this population that is flowing through its recent growth and visibility in the public space,” many say the researchers. “Confirm the confirmation, nuance disproved decisions about the Brussels French.”
In 2021 Brussels had 67,000 inhabitants of French nationality, twice as many as in 2000. “It concerns a rather young and female population”, it sounds. For one hundred French men aged 20 to 34 in Brussels, there are one hundred and twenty women of French nationality, in the category of 20 to 24 years there are even 150 women.
“These findings have to do with the fact that many French people come to live in Brussels for their higher education. The Brussels educational institutions receive about 10,000,” said Casier and Decroly.
South of Brussels
“In relation to what is generally thought about a high income. Work is continuing on income. What most Brussels French people do have in common is a higher education diploma.
Less surprising is the conclusion that the French are most numerous in the south of Brussels. Most of them live in Uccle, Ixelles and high Saint-Gilles. Along the Avenue Louise and ten west of the Bois de la Cambre and the Sonian Forest, ten percent of the inhabitants have French nationality.
The researchers also investigated why so many French people live in Brussels. “The city has a good connection with France, especially since the creation of the Thalys in 1996. The dominant language is French and access to higher education is then available in France,” say Casier and Decroly. They also point to the interesting tax regime for higher incomes and lower housing prices compared to Paris. “The prices here are with a city like Lyon. Brussels is part of the Paris of destinations for French people who want to move, just like regional cities like Lyon, Marseille, Lille, Nantes or Bordeaux.”