CV NEWS FEED // It has been 10 years since two French state bodies have statistically analyzed the continuously evolving status of religion in the country. Now, rising immigration in the country has brought one religion—Islam—to the front of an otherwise predominantly secular society.
In a recent article for the Daily Compass, Italian journalist Lorenza Formicola presents data from two surveys on religion across demographics in France. The Institut national d’études démographiques (INED), and the Institute national de la statistique et des études économiques (INSEE) conducted the research.
INED is a small Paris-based institute attached to the French Ministry of Research, and INSEE constitutes a much larger department of the Economy and Finance Ministry that is present across all of France.
According to Formicola, the survey results indicate rising immigration levels in France have “strengthened the Muslim presence in France and changed the internal balance” of the country. Furthermore, she notes, the results also communicate a “correlation between migration flows in France and the increase in instances related to Islam.”
However, the standout finding Formicola presents is from a study by Comité Laïcité République, which states that 57% of Muslims living in France consider shari’a law more important than the laws of the French Republic.
This is a 10-point increase from 2016, Formicola notes.
According to statistics from the Directorate General of Foreigners in France (DGEF) of the Ministry of the Interior, France issued 2.4 million visas in 2023, and 326,954 first residence permits. In 2022, the country issued 1.7 million visas.
From 1997 to 2023, the country has seen a 172% increase in first residence permits issued to citizens of “third countries,” which are outside of the European Union.
In 2021, 72% of these beneficiaries came from Islamic countries. The top countries of origin for the past 12 years alone are Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Afghanistan, Guinea, and Turkey.
