The number of non-Irish nationals on the Live Register declined slightly last month, according to new figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
The data show there were 81,266 non-Irish nationals on the Live Register in February, down 129 or 0.2 per cent when compared to January.
However, during the year to the end of February the number of non-Irish nationals signing on increased by 9,954 or 14 per cent to 81,266.
Overall, there are now 436,956 people on the Live Register.
The latest figures show there were 45,649 non-Irish nationals from the EU15 to EU27 States on the Live Register with 4,139 from the EU15 but not from Ireland or the UK.
The number of non-Irish nationals on the Live Register has risen from 29,723 over the past two years and non-Irish nationals represented 18.6 per cent of all persons on the register last month.
In February, there were 355,690 Irish nationals on the Live Register, unchanged from the previous month. However, in the year to February, the number of Irish nationals on the Register rose by 74,549 or 26.5 per cent.
The number of Irish nationals on the Live Register has risen from 159,762 in February 2008.
The largest percentage increase was recorded in the mid-east region which was up 0.9 per cent from January to February 2010. The largest percentage decreases were in the Border and Midland regions, where the numbers on the register fell by 0.4 per cent.
In the year to February 2010, the unadjusted Live Register total increased by 84,503 or 24 per cent with all geographic regions showing a rise in figures.
The largest annual increase in percentage terms was recored in the mid-west region, where numbers rose by 27.5 per cent. The Border region had the smallest percentage increase with an additional 19.7 per cent of people there joining the Live Register.
The Live Register is not designed to measure unemployment. It includes part-time workers (those who work up to three days a week), seasonal and casual workers entitled to Jobseekers Benefit or Allowance.
