Population Grows to 6.11 Million, Singapore's Aging Accelerates

Due to an increase in the number of non-residents such as work permit holders and foreign domestic helpers over the past year, Singapore's total population rose to 6.11 million as of this June, an increase of 1.2% year-on-year, although lower than the 2% growth in the same period last year.

Lianhe Zaobao reports that Singapore's National Population and Talent Division released the "2025 Population Brief" on the 29th. The report notes that Singapore's total population surpassed 6 million for the first time last year, reaching about 6.04 million as of last June.

Of particular concern is that the pace of population aging is accelerating, with the proportion of Singapore citizens aged 65 and above rising from 13.1% in 2015 to 20.7% in 2025. The number of citizens aged 80 and above also increased by 60% over the same period.

According to the Population Brief, the total number of citizen marriages last year reached 22,955, which is 5.7% less than the 24,355 recorded in 2023, but still higher than the 22,165 in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The number of newborn citizens increased, with 29,237 born last year, a 1.2% rise compared to the 28,877 in 2023. However, the situation of low fertility rates has not changed; the overall resident fertility rate remained at a low level of 0.97, the same as in 2023.

The number of citizens aged 80 and above rose from 91,000 in 2015 to 145,000 this year, an increase of 60%. By 2030, about one quarter (23.9%) of citizens will be seniors aged 65 and above.

The report states that Singapore continues to grant citizenship in a steady and controlled manner. Last year, 22,766 were granted citizenship, and 35,264 were given permanent residency. In the past five years, an average of 21,300 were granted citizenship each year, and 33,000 were given permanent residency, slightly higher than the previous five years. From 2015 to 2019, the annual average was 20,500 for citizenship and 31,700 for permanent residency.