Census 2022 successfully completed

The third and final stage of Census 2022 has been completed. 4.6 million housing and 9.2 million personal questionnaires were received by the deadline, and the final results will be determined by HCSO using state databases. This year's census is expected to be the last traditional census in Hungary. For the next census, it is planned that the data will be extracted by the statistical office exclusively from administrative sources.

Census 2022 closed on 28 November. Including those who participated in the replacement census and who fulfilled their obligation to provide data by contacting the municipal clerk last week, a total of 4.6 million housing questionnaires and 9.2 million personal questionnaires were received by the census system - the latter representing 96 percent of the estimated expected population. HCSO will replace the missing data from state databases. This is the first census in which the statistical office has been given such extensive powers to make the data more accurate: it can use state databases to cross-check the information provided in the census with administrative data and fill in missing data where necessary.

This year's census was also a first in that it was the first time that the census was fully electronic. Between 1 and 19 October, everyone was able to fill in the questionnaire independently, and during the enumerator phase and the replacement census, enumerators recorded the interview data on a tablet. In the online phase of the census, a total of 7 million personal questionnaires were received from 3.2 million addresses in just under three weeks. This was the first time that HCSO was able to reach so many people via the Internet, and this ratio is outstanding even in an international comparison in such a short time.

The first results of the census will be available in the first quarter of 2023, with the publication of detailed data expected in autumn 2023.