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City of VincentCommunity profile

In 2021, 43.5% of people in Perth were born overseas, compared with 32.2% in Western Australia.

Country of Birth data identifies where people were born and is indicative of the level of cultural diversity in Perth. The mix of Country of Birth groups is also indicative of historical settlement patterns, as source countries for Australia's immigration program have varied significantly over time.

To get a more complete picture of cultural and ethnic characteristics, Perth's Country of Birth data should be viewed together with Ancestry, Language Spoken at Home and Religion.

Please note: Due to changes in ABS rules around perturbation and additivity of data to protect the confidentiality of individuals, counts of individual birthplace groups and totals derived from them may differ slightly from those published by the ABS. For more information see notes on data confidentiality.

Q:

Derived from the Census question:

'In which country was the person born?'

Birthplace - Summary
Perth - Total persons (Usual residence)20212001Change
BirthplaceNumber%Western Australia %Number%Western Australia %2001 to 2021
Total overseas born2,49043.532.21,07738.027.0+1,412
Australia2,77748.562.01,38648.967.7+1,391
Not stated4618.05.836813.05.3+93
Total Population5,728100.0100.02,832100.0100.0+2,896
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics, Census of Population and Housing 2001 and 2021. Compiled and presented by .id (informed decisions).
Please refer to specific data notes for more information
Birthplace - Ranked by size
Perth - Overseas born (Usual residence)20212001Change
BirthplaceNumber%Western Australia %Number%Western Australia %2001 to 2021
United Kingdom3786.68.92508.811.0+128
China2193.81.1411.50.3+177
Vietnam1552.70.71234.30.6+32
New Zealand1332.32.8782.82.5+55
Malaysia1272.21.2371.31.0+90
India1051.82.3130.50.7+92
South Korea741.30.270.20.1+67
Taiwan711.20.20--0.0+71
Italy661.20.71334.71.3-67
Ireland651.10.7140.50.5+51
Show all (36 entries)

Excludes countries of birth with fewer than 10 people.

Dominant groups

Analysis of the country of birth of the population in Perth in 2021 compared to Western Australia shows that there was a larger proportion of people born overseas.

Overall, 43.5% of the population was born overseas, compared with 32.2% for Western Australia.

The largest non-English speaking country of birth in Perth was China, where 3.8% of the population, or 219 people, were born.

The major differences between the countries of birth of the population in Perth and Western Australia were:

  • A larger percentage of people born in China (3.8% compared to 1.1%)
  • A larger percentage of people born in Vietnam (2.7% compared to 0.7%)
  • A larger percentage of people born in Taiwan (1.2% compared to 0.2%)
  • A smaller percentage of people born in United Kingdom (6.6% compared to 8.9%)

Emerging groups

Between 2001 and 2021, the number of people born overseas increased by 1413 or 131.2%.

The largest changes in birthplace countries of the population in this area between 2001 and 2021 were for those born in:

  • China (+177 persons)
  • United Kingdom (+128 persons)
  • India (+92 persons)
  • Malaysia (+90 persons)

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