For the first time since the beginning of the IBGE historical series in 1991, the state of São Paulo recorded negative balance in internal migration. Between 2017 and 2022, more people left what they arrived in the state: there were 89,578 residents less in the period, according to data from Census 2022. The reversal of migratory flow marks a significant change in the role that St. Paul played as the main destination of Brazilians from other regions.
Rio de Janeiro also presented population loss in the same period, with 165,360 people leaving the state. Unlike São Paulo, this was not a novelty: Rio is the only state who lost residents to other federation units in all census surveys conducted since 1991. Even so, the negative balance from 2017 to 2022 was the largest ever recorded by the state.
Other states that also had negative migratory balance were Maranhão, Pará and the Federal District. Among the most sought after destinations in the period, Santa Catarina led with time off, receiving 354,350 new residents from other states. Goiás, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso and Paraná also recorded population growth driven by migration.
With the new scenario, the traditional Urban Poles of the Southeast began to divide space with Midwest and South states as the main destinations of the displacement population. Santa Catarina, for example, increased by 4.66% in the total population only with the internal migratory balance, the highest proportional growth recorded in the country.
