Iranian diaspora
Iranian diaspora
Map of the Iranian diaspora as of 2021
Total population
~4,037,258 (official estimate, 2021)~1.6 million (asylum seekers, 2025)[1][2]
Americas1,905,813 (47.20%)
Europe1,184,552 (29.34%)
Other (Asia and Oceania)1,115,572 (23.46%)
Languages
Persian and Languages of Iran
Religion

The Iranian diaspora (collectively known as Iranian expats or expatriates) is the global population of Iranian citizens or people of Iranian descent living outside Iran.[3]

While Iranian migration has occurred historically, a significant wave of Iranians fled Iran after the 1979 Islamic Revolution due to political persecution under the new government.[4] This trend has continued and intensified in the 2020s due to economic instability and political unrest.

In 2021, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran published statistics showing that 4,037,258 Iranians were living abroad. This figure includes people of Iranian ancestry in the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Israel, Turkey, and Bahrain whose families may have left Iran decades prior to the 1979 revolution, as well as those with partial ancestry.[1][2] By December 2025, United Nations data indicated that there were 1.6 million Iranian asylum seekers worldwide, suggesting that approximately 1 in every 15 Iranians has left the country.[5]

Over one million people of Iranian descent live in the United States, with significant populations (between 100,000 and 500,000) in Australia, Canada, Germany, Israel, Sweden, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.[6][7] In early 2026, the Iranian diaspora began holding rallies around the world in support of the 2025–2026 Iranian protests.[8]

Migration waves

Iran has experienced waves of emigration since 1979. The government has proposed the creation of a ministry of immigration following reports indicating critical emigration statistics, largely driven by political instability and economic sanctions.[9][10][11]

Statistics by country

Map of the Iranian diaspora as of 2021
  Iran
  ≥ 1,000,000
  ≥ 100,000
  ≥ 10,000
  ≥ 1,000
Popularity change of countries among Iranian Immigrants (2016–2021)
The Lion and Sun flag is commonly used by members of the diaspora as symbol of opposition to the Islamic Republic.[12]
List of countries and territories by Iranian population
Country Iranian diaspora (est.) Article
United StatesSteady 568,564 (2021) Iranian Americans
KuwaitSteady 400,000 (citizens)[13]Decrease 38,000 (non-Kuwaiti, 2021) 'Ajam of Kuwait
United Arab EmiratesIncrease 357,000 (2021) Iranians in the United Arab Emirates
GermanyIncrease 336,000 (2023)[14]Iranians in Germany
CanadaIncrease 280,805 (2021)[15]Iranian Canadian
IsraelSteady 250,000 Iranian Jews in Israel
BahrainIncrease 225,000 (Estimated)[16]Ajam of Bahrain
SwedenIncrease 126,700 (2023) Swedish Iranians
TurkeyIncrease 126,640 (2021) Immigration to Turkey
FranceIncrease 118,300 (2023)[17][18]Iranians in France
United KingdomIncrease 114,432 (2021)[19]Iranians in the United Kingdom
IraqDecrease 110,920 (2021) Iranians in Iraq
AustraliaIncrease 70,899 (2021)[20]Iranian Australians
NetherlandsIncrease 52,000 (2021) Iranians in the Netherlands
AustriaSteady 40,000 (2021)
DenmarkSteady 32,700 (2021) Iranians in Denmark
ItalyIncrease 30,532(2024)[21]Only including Iran-born people
MalaysiaDecrease 30,000 (2021) Iranians in Malaysia
NorwayDecrease 20,000 (2021) Norwegian Iranians
 SwitzerlandIncrease 20,000 (2021)
BelgiumDecrease 20,000 (2021)
QatarDecrease 20,000 (2021) Iranians in Qatar
GeorgiaIncrease 16,000 (2021)
IndiaDecrease 12,760 (2021) Demographics of India
New ZealandIncrease 12,000 (2021) Iranian New Zealander
SpainDecrease 12,000 (2021) Iranians in Spain
FinlandIncrease 10,129 (2021)[22]
AzerbaijanDecrease 10,000 (2021)
ArmeniaDecrease 10,000 (2021)
SyriaDecrease 10,000 (2021) Iranians in Syria
OmanDecrease 9,500 (2021)
TajikistanIncrease 8,000 (2019)
ChinaDecrease 7,780 (2021) Iranians in China
LebanonDecrease 5,000 (2021) Iranians in Lebanon
ThailandSteady 5,000 (2021) Iranians in Thailand
CyprusIncrease 5,000 (2021)
South AfricaSteady 5,000 (2021)
JapanDecrease 4,237 (2022)[23]Iranians in Japan
UkraineDecrease 4,200 (2021)
HungaryDecrease 4,111 (2021)
PakistanDecrease 3,950 (2021) Iranian Pakistanis
AfghanistanDecrease 3,800 (2021)
RomaniaDecrease 3,500 (2021) Iranians in Romania
KazakhstanDecrease 3,000 (2021)
PortugalIncrease 2,934 (2024)[24]Only including foreign citizens, thus excluding, for instance, the 545 Iranians that have acquired Portuguese citizenship since 2008.[25]
BrazilIncrease 2,525 (2024)[26]Only including Iran-born people
GreeceSteady 2,500 (2021)
RussiaDecrease 2,434 (2021)[27]Iranians in Russia
ArgentinaSteady 2,000 (2021)
PolandDecrease 2,000 (2021) Iranians in Poland
South KoreaDecrease 1,770 (2021)
PhilippinesIncrease 1,500 (2021) Iranians in the Philippines
Slovak RepublicDecrease 1,140 (2021)
TajikistanIncrease 1,000 (2021)
TanzaniaSteady 1,000 (2021)
 IrelandIncrease 1,000 (2021)
Czech RepublicDecrease 1,000 (2021)
 MexicoSteady 500 (2021)
BulgariaDecrease 500 (2021)
EgyptDecrease 500 (2021)
KyrgyzstanDecrease 500 (2021)
EstoniaIncrease 426 (2021)
Hong KongIncrease 410 (2021)
VenezuelaSteady 400 (2021)
IndonesiaDecrease 400 (2021)
 ColombiaSteady 350 (2021) Iranian Colombians
 ChileSteady 300 (2021)
 BelarusDecrease 227 (2021)
 SudanSteady 225 (2021)
 SingaporeSteady 200 (2021)
 SerbiaDecrease 171 (2021)
 BoliviaSteady 150 (2021)
 SloveniaDecrease 125 (2021)
 Bosnia and HerzegovinaDecrease 110 (2021)
 JordanSteady 100 (2021)
 KenyaSteady 70 (2021)
 GhanaSteady 70 (2021)
 UruguaySteady 70 (2021)
Ivory CoastSteady 65 (2021)
 CroatiaDecrease 60 (2021)
 TurkmenistanDecrease 54 (2021)
 UgandaSteady 50 (2021)
 TunisiaSteady 47 (2021)
 SenegalSteady 47 (2021)
 BangladeshDecrease 44 (2021)
 MauritiusSteady 41 (2021)
 VietnamSteady 40 (2021)
 NicaraguaSteady 40 (2021)
 Democratic Republic of the CongoSteady 23 (2021)
 BruneiSteady 21 (2021)
 AlgeriaSteady 20 (2021)
 GambiaSteady 17 (2021)
 NigerSteady 15 (2021)
 NigeriaSteady 15 (2021)
 EthiopiaSteady 12 (2021)
 MadagascarSteady 12 (2021)
 AlbaniaDecrease 12 (2021)
 North MacedoniaDecrease 11 (2021)
 CameroonSteady 10 (2021)
 GuineaSteady 10 (2021)
 NamibiaSteady 10 (2021)
 Burkina FasoSteady 6 (2021)
 CubaDecrease 3 (2021)
 MaliSteady 2 (2021)
 North KoreaSteady 1 (2021)
 Saudi ArabiaSteady 1 (2023)
West Asia and Other Increase2,433,000 (60.26%) (2021) Anglosphere
North, Central and South AmericaIncrease1,905,813 (47.20%) (2021) Americas
EuropeIncrease1,184,552 (29.34%) (2021) Europe
Total: Increase~4,037,258 (2021)[28]List of sovereign states and dependent territories by immigrant population

Socioeconomic status

Nearly 60 percent of Iranians abroad have earned at least an undergraduate degree. They have some of the highest rates of self-employment among immigrant groups. Many have founded their own companies, including Isaac Larian, the founder of MGA Entertainment, and Pierre Omidyar, who founded eBay in 1995 in San Jose, California. Iranian households in the United States earned on average $87,288 annually as of 2018, and are ranked ninth by income.[29]

Students abroad

According to the Iranian government, 55,686 Iranian students were studying abroad in 2013:[30] 8,883 studied in Malaysia, 7,341 in the United States, 5,638 in Canada, 3,504 in Germany, 3,364 in Turkey, 3,228 in Britain, and the rest in other countries.[31][32] The Iranian Ministry of Education estimated that between 350,000 and 500,000 Iranians were studying outside Iran as of 2014.[33]

Politics

Economics

In 2000, the Iran Press Service reported that Iranian expatriates had invested between $200 and $400 billion in the United States, Europe, and China, but almost nothing in Iran.[7] In Dubai, Iranian expatriates have invested an estimated $200 billion (2006).[34] Migrant Iranian workers abroad remitted less than two billion dollars home in 2006.[35]

High net-worth individuals

Rank Name Citizenship Net worth (USD) Source(s) of wealth
1Pierre OmidyarIranUSAFrance12.9 billion [36]eBay
2Ghermezian familyIranCAN4.0 billion [37]Triple Five Group
3Farhad MoshiriIranUK2.8 billion [38]Metalloinvest, Everton
4Nazarian familyIranUSA2.0 billion [39]Qualcomm
5Vincent & Robert TchenguizIranUK1.4 billion [40][41]Real Estate
6Manny MashoufIranUSA1.3 billion [42]Bebe stores
7Merage familyIranUSA1.1 billion [43]Hot Pockets
8Nasser David KhaliliIranUK1.0 billion [44]Real Estate
9Hassan KhosrowshahiIranCAN950 million [45]Future Shop
10Omid KordestaniIranUSA900 million [46]Google
11Anousheh AnsariIranUSA750 million [47]Sonus Networks
12Isaac LarianIranUSA723 million [46]MGA Entertainment
13Arash FerdowsiIranUSA400 million [48]Dropbox

Expatriate fund

The fund's stated goal is to attract investment from Iranian expatriates and to use their experience in stimulating foreign investments.[49]

Religious affiliation

Members of the Iranian diaspora are considered to be mostly secular. The majority of them do not take fundamental Islamic rituals, such as daily prayers or fasting, and have largely embraced Western secularism.[50] According to a 2008 survey by the Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA), 42% of Iranian Americans identified as Muslim, 9% as Christian, 6% as Jewish, 5% as Zoroastrian, 7% as Baháʼí, and 31% as other or non-religious.[51][52][53] A 2012 national telephone survey of a sample of 400 Iranian-Americans, commissioned by the PAAIA and conducted by Zogby Research Services, asked the respondents what their religions were. The responses broke down as follows: Muslim 31%, atheist/realist/humanist 11%, agnostic 8%, Baháʼí 7%, Jewish 5%, Protestant 5%, Roman Catholic 2%, Zoroastrian 2%, "Other" 15%, and "No response" 15%.[54] The survey had a cooperation rate of 31.2%.[54] The margin of error for the results was ± 5 percentage points, with higher margins of error for sub-groups.[54] Notably, the number of Muslims decreased from 42% in 2008 to 31% in 2012.[54][55]

Notes

In the period between 1961 and 2005, the United States became the main destination of Iranian emigrants. An estimated 378,995 Iranians immigrated to the United States in that period, with California being the most common destination (158,613 Iran-born in 2000),[56]New York (17,323),[56]Texas (15,581),[56]Virginia (10,889),[56] and Maryland (9,733).[56] The Los Angeles Metropolitan Area was estimated to be home to approximately 114,712 Iranian immigrants,[56] earning the Westwood area of Los Angeles the nickname Tehrangeles.

The U.S. Census Bureau's decennial census form does not offer a designation for individuals of Iranian descent, and therefore it is estimated that only a fraction of the total number of Iranians are writing in their ancestry. The 2000 census estimated that the Iranian American community (including the US-born children of the Iranian foreign-born) numbers around 330,000. Studies using alternative statistical methods have estimated the actual number of Iranian Americans in the range of 691,000 to 1.2 million.[7][57]

See also

References

  1. ^ ab"Archived copy"(PDF). Archived from the original(PDF) on 2021-06-05. Retrieved 2021-06-06.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  2. ^ ab"آمار پراکندگی ایرانیان مقیم خارج از کشور + نمودار". Gostaresh.news. 27 February 2021. Retrieved 2022-08-05.
  3. ^"Diaspora". Iranicaonline.org. Encyclopædia Iranica. December 15, 1995. pp. 370–387. Archived from the original on 9 February 2015. Retrieved 8 February 2015.
  4. ^Mahmoudi, Hassan (2021-04-21). "Iran Loses Highly Educated and Skilled Citizens during Long-Running "Brain Drain"". migrationpolicy.org. Retrieved 2025-12-26.
  5. ^"کارنامه ۴۵ سال حکومت جمهوری اسلامی: از هر ۱۵ ایرانی، یک نفر کشور را ترک کرده است".
  6. ^Esfandiari, Golnaz (2004-03-08). "Iran: Coping With The World's Highest Rate Of Brain Drain". Rferl.org. Archived from the original on 2008-04-29. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
  7. ^ abc"Migration Information Source - Iran: A Vast Diaspora Abroad and Millions of Refugees at Home". Migrationinformation.org. Archived from the original on 2014-02-15. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
  8. ^Anvari, Amirhadi (January 21, 2026). "168 protests, 73 cities: Iranian diaspora takes uprising message worldwide". Iran International. Retrieved January 21, 2026.
  9. ^اقتصاد24, پایگاه خبری، تحلیلی. "افزایش بی سابقه موج مهاجرت ایرانیان در سال ۱۴۰۲ | اقتصاد24". fa (in Persian). Retrieved 2024-04-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  10. ^"خبر آنلاین: موج مهاجرت در ایران به طبقه متوسط رسید". Archived from the original on 2023-10-11. Retrieved 2026-01-15.
  11. ^"بی‌سابقه‌ترین موج مهاجرت از ایران/ وزارتخانه مهاجرت تشکیل می‌شود؟". تجارت نیوز (in Persian). 2024-04-11. Retrieved 2024-04-11.
  12. ^McKeever, Amy (2022-11-29). "Why Iran's flag is at the center of controversy at the World Cup". National Geographic. Archived from the original on 2025-09-05. Retrieved 2026-01-03.
  13. ^Moojan Momen (5 November 2015). Shi'i Islam: A Beginner's Guide. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9781780747880.
  14. ^"Bevölkerung in Privathaushalten nach Migrationshintergrund im weiteren Sinn nach ausgewählten Geburtsstaaten".
  15. ^"Government of Canada, Statistics Canada (2022-10-26). "Ethnic or cultural origin by gender and age: Canada, provinces and territories, census metropolitan areas and census agglomerations with parts". www12.statcan.gc.ca. Retrieved 2024-09-28". Statistics Canada. 26 October 2022. Retrieved 2025-09-23.
  16. ^"Persian of Bahrain (PGID: PG011304)". PeopleGroups.org. Retrieved 2026-01-19.
  17. ^Project, Joshua. "Persian in France". joshuaproject.net. Retrieved 2024-12-19.
  18. ^"Iranians abroad per country"(PDF). iranian.mfa.ir. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Retrieved 2024-08-27.
  19. ^United Kingdom census. "2021 United Kingdom census, United Kingdom by Country of Birth".
  20. ^"Australia's Population by Country of Birth, 2021 | Australian Bureau of Statistics". 26 April 2022.
  21. ^"Popolazione residente per cittadinanza o paese di nascita". Tuttitalia.it (in Italian). Retrieved 25 December 2024.
  22. ^"Population 31.12. By Origin, Background country, Language, Year, Age, Sex and Information".
  23. ^"【在留外国人統計（旧登録外国人統計）統計表】 | 出入国在留管理庁".
  24. ^"AIMA 2024 Report"(PDF).
  25. ^"População estrangeira que adquiriu nacionalidade portuguesa (N.º) por Sexo, Nacionalidade anterior e Tipo de aquisição de nacionalidade; Anual".
  26. ^Immigrants in Brazil (2024, in Portuguese)
  27. ^"Национальный состав населения Российской Федерации согласно переписи населения 2021 года". Archived from the original on 2022-12-30. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  28. ^"Iranians abroad per country". iranian.mfa.ir. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Retrieved 2021-08-27.
  29. ^"Iranian Americans free to thrive in the U.S." 20 July 2018.
  30. ^"12,000 foreign students studying at Iranian universities". Payvand.com. Archived from the original on 2017-04-17. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  31. ^"14,000 foreign students studying in Iran". Payvand.com. Archived from the original on 2016-10-24. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  32. ^Coughlan, Sean (2015-06-23). "US universities on symbolic visit to Iran - BBC News". Bbc.com. Archived from the original on 2017-01-05. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  33. ^"Over 350,000 Iranians studying abroad: Education Minister". Payvand.com. Archived from the original on 2016-10-24. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  34. ^Iran Daily - Domestic Economy - 04/04/06Archived February 19, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  35. ^Iran Daily - Domestic Economy - 10/22/07Archived October 25, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  36. ^"Forbes 400: Pierre Omidyar". Forbes. Archived from the original on 2017-08-23. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
  37. ^Avissar, Irit (October 27, 2010). "Canadian Jewish family in talks to buy Clal Insurance". The Jerusalem Post. Archived from the original on June 3, 2016. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
  38. ^Farhad MoshiriArchived 2019-07-14 at the Wayback Machine Forbes.com. Retrieved 26 April 2013.
  39. ^"Izak Nazarian: From Tehran Rags to LA Riches". vosizneias.com. 29 September 2009. Archived from the original on 2016-12-13. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  40. ^"Vincent and Robert Tchenguiz". The Times. London. Archived from the original on 5 May 2009.
  41. ^"Tchenguiz brothers held in Kaupthing raid: source". Reuters. 9 March 2011. Archived from the original on 20 November 2015. Retrieved 1 July 2017.
  42. ^"#754 Manny Mashouf & family". Forbes. 2007-03-08. Archived from the original on 2006-05-03. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
  43. ^"The Forbes 400". Forbes. 30 September 2002. Archived from the original on 19 August 2017. Retrieved 1 September 2017.
  44. ^"#701 Nasser Khalili - The World's Billionaires 2009". Forbes. 2009-03-11. Archived from the original on 2017-08-19. Retrieved 2017-09-01.
  45. ^"No. 10: Hassan Khosrowshahi of Inwest Investments Ltd., DRI Capital Inc. has an estimated net worth of $0.94 billion". Vancouver Sun. May 14, 2012. Archived from the original on January 16, 2019. Retrieved February 9, 2019.
  46. ^ abWells, Jane (20 Aug 2008). "Barbie v. Bratz: How Much $$$ For Mattel?". CNBC. Archived from the original on 19 August 2017. Retrieved 9 September 2017.
  47. ^Kurata, Phillip (2012-02-24). "Iranian-American Woman Follows Dream to Wealth and Success". Payvan News. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2016-09-18.
  48. ^"Arash Ferdowsi - The 25 Richest Tech Entrepreneurs Under 30". Complex. 15 August 2012. Archived from the original on 24 June 2014. Retrieved 18 September 2016.
  49. ^"Iran Daily - Domestic Economy - 04/19/09". Archived from the original on 2009-06-22. Retrieved 2017-07-17.
  50. ^Gholami, Reza (2016). Secularism and Identity: Non-Islamiosity in the Iranian Diaspora. Routledge. pp. 2–5. ISBN 9781317058274.
  51. ^Public Opinion Survey of Iranian Americans. Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA)/Zogby, December 2008. Retrieved April 11, 2014.
  52. ^"Persian NYers Show Their Pride at Murray Hill Parade". Time Warner Cable News. Archived from the original on April 19, 2014. Retrieved April 20, 2014.
  53. ^"Disparaging Islam and the Iranian-American Identity: To Snuggle or to Struggle". Payvand.com. 21 September 2009. Archived from the original on 8 May 2014.
  54. ^ abcd"2012 NATIONAL PUBLIC OPINION SURVEY of IRANIAN AMERICANS regarding Potential Military Strike Against Iran"(PDF). paaia.org. 2012. Retrieved 2013-07-20.
  55. ^"Public Opinion Survey of Iranian Americans"(PDF). PAAIA. December 2008. Archived from the original(PDF) on 21 December 2008.
  56. ^ abcdef"Migration Information Source - Spotlight on the Iranian Foreign Born". Migrationinformation.org. Archived from the original on 2012-12-14. Retrieved 2012-12-10.
  57. ^Mostashari, Ali (October 2003). "Factsheet on the Iranian-American Community"(PDF). Iranian Studies Group Research. Archived(PDF) from the original on 2009-03-05. Retrieved 2017-07-17.

Sources

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Iranian diaspora.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Iranian_diaspora&oldid=1335047136"