Size of British community in the province increases even after Brexit

On 1 January last year there were 56,019 Britons on town hall 'padrons' in Malaga province, (which includes the Costa del Sol), up from 53,500 at the start of 2021 and representing an increase of almost five per cent.

This came after the cut-off date to register for residency under Brexit rules, so the rise cannot all be explained by unregistered Britons becoming legal. It also came with many Covid restrictions still in place.

The increase in British residents was not the same across all major Costa municipalities. Among the towns with biggest increases were: Marbella, up from 4,661 to 5,232 residents with UK nationality; Estepona, up from 4,111 to 4,838; Malaga city, from 1,101 to 1,200; Benhavís, 1,592 to 1,880 and Benalmádena, 3,420 to 3,719. In contrast, there was smaller growth in Mijas, Manilva, Torremolinos and Nerja. The number of British nationals in Fuengirola did not change when comparing the start of 2021 with the start of 2022.