Remittance inflows to GDP in Tonga

Tonga: Remittance inflows to GDP was 39.0% in 2020. ▲ Rising

Latest (2020)
39.0%
Change on year
up 4.9%
World rank
1st
of 197 countries
All-time high
39.0%
in 2020
All-time low
12.2%
in 1981
Years of data
39
1975–2020

Remittance inflows to GDP in Tonga, 1975–2020

102030401975199720201975: 20.6 %1976: 17.9 %1977: 16.2 %1978: 14.6 %1979: 14.7 %1980: 13.3 %1981: 12.2 %1982: 13.1 %1983: 27.1 %1984: 21 %1985: 36.4 %1986: 30.6 %1987: 27.4 %1988: 15.6 %1989: 14 %1990: 21.1 %1991: 14.2 %1992: 15.6 %1993: 15.1 %2001: 29.2 %2002: 34 %2003: 29 %2004: 28.4 %2005: 26.3 %2006: 26.7 %2007: 27.4 %2008: 30 %2009: 26.2 %2010: 20.2 %2011: 20.3 %2012: 19.4 %2013: 27.2 %2014: 27.1 %2015: 29.6 %2016: 30 %2017: 34.5 %2018: 37.5 %2019: 37.2 %2020: 39 %

Source: World Development Indicators (WDI), World Bank. Measured in %.

Analysis

Tonga recorded 39.0% for remittance inflows to gdp in 2020. That is the highest value across all 39 years on record.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 4.9% on the previous year and up 93.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, remittance inflows to gdp in Tonga peaked at 39.0% in 2020 and was at its lowest, 12.2%, in 1981.

Tonga ranks 1st of 197 countries on this measure, in the top 10%.

The long-run direction has been consistently rising across the 39 years of available data.

Remittance inflows to GDP in Tonga, year by year

Annual values for Remittance inflows to GDP (%) in Tonga, 1975 to 2020.
Year % Change
1975 20.6% —
1976 17.9% -13.1%
1977 16.2% -9.3%
1978 14.6% -10.2%
1979 14.7% +1.0%
1980 13.3% -9.6%
1981 12.2% -8.2%
1982 13.1% +7.1%
1983 27.1% +106.9%
1984 21.0% -22.6%
1985 36.4% +73.8%
1986 30.6% -16.0%
1987 27.4% -10.4%
1988 15.6% -43.2%
1989 14.0% -10.2%
1990 21.1% +50.9%
1991 14.2% -32.7%
1992 15.6% +9.7%
1993 15.1% -2.8%
2001 29.2% +92.6%
2002 34.0% +16.7%
2003 29.0% -14.9%
2004 28.4% -2.0%
2005 26.3% -7.2%
2006 26.7% +1.3%
2007 27.4% +2.7%
2008 30.0% +9.6%
2009 26.2% -12.7%
2010 20.2% -23.0%
2011 20.3% +0.8%
2012 19.4% -4.7%
2013 27.2% +40.4%
2014 27.1% -0.4%
2015 29.6% +9.1%
2016 30.0% +1.5%
2017 34.5% +14.8%
2018 37.5% +8.8%
2019 37.2% -0.9%
2020 39.0% +4.9%

Tonga compared with similar countries

  • Tonga's 39.0% is above the median for upper middle income countries, which is 4.0%, 9.7× the median. (58 countries reporting)
  • Tonga's 39.0% is above the median for East Asia & Pacific, which is 2.3%, 16.8× the median. (32 countries reporting)

Biggest year-on-year movements

Years where Remittance inflows to GDP in Tonga changed far more than this series normally does. A large move can be a real event or a change in how the figure was measured — the source note below says who published it.

YearChange FromTo
1983 +106.9% 13.1% 27.1%
2001 +92.6% 15.1% 29.2%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
1970s 16.8% 14.6% 20.6% 5
1980s 21.1% 12.2% 36.4% 10
1990s 16.5% 14.2% 21.1% 4
2000s 28.6% 26.2% 34.0% 9
2010s 28.3% 19.4% 37.5% 10
2020s 39.0% 39.0% 39.0% 1

Countries ranked near Tonga

  1. 2 Kyrgyzstan 31.1% compare
  2. 3 Tajikistan 26.9% compare
  3. 4 Lebanon 25.6% compare

See the full ranking of 197 places →

More financial sector data for Tonga

All data for Tonga →

Frequently asked questions

What is remittance inflows to gdp in Tonga?
Remittance inflows to gdp in Tonga was 39.0% in 2020, according to World Development Indicators (WDI), World Bank.
What is the highest remittance inflows to gdp recorded in Tonga?
The highest recorded value was 39.0% in 2020.
What is the lowest remittance inflows to gdp recorded in Tonga?
The lowest recorded value was 12.2% in 1981.
How does Tonga rank for remittance inflows to gdp?
Tonga ranks 1st out of 197 countries with data for 2020.
Is remittance inflows to gdp rising or falling in Tonga?
Over the last ten years it is up 93.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is rising.
Where does this Tonga data come from?
The figures come from World Development Indicators (WDI), World Bank, published as part of Remittance inflows to GDP (%). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

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Remittance inflows to GDP in Tonga. Statizoid, drawing on World Development Indicators (WDI), World Bank. Retrieved 25 September 2026, from https://financial-sector.statizoid.com/stat/remittance-inflows-to-gdp-percent/tonga/

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About this data

Indicator
Remittance inflows to GDP (%)
Unit
%
Source
World Development Indicators (WDI), World Bank
Licence
CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data)
Coverage
197 places, 6,501 data points, 1970–2020
Last refreshed

Workers' remittances and compensation of employees comprise current transfers by migrant workers and wages and salaries earned by nonresident workers. Data are the sum of three items defined in the fifth edition of the IMF's Balance of Payments Manual: workers' remittances, compensation of employees, and migrants' transfers. Remittances are classified as current private transfers from migrant workers resident in the host country for more than a year, irrespective of their immigration status, to recipients in their country of origin. Migrants' transfers are defined as the net worth of migrants who are expected to remain in the host country for more than one year that is transferred from one country to another at the time of migration. Compensation of employees is the income of migrants who have lived in the host country for less than a year.