ABSTRACT
One of the most dynamic developments in Slovakia has been among immigrants from 'old' countries of the European Union. In its modern history, Slovakia has been an emigration rather than an immigration country. The fall of communism and the establishment of a new social and economic order in Slovakia after 1989 resulted in fundamental shifts. As far as the demographic and social characteristics of immigrant populations in Slovakia are concerned, the official data are quite limited. The participation of immigrants in public life and their integration into society is not manifested much in the Slovak Republic. The collapse of communism and new political, social and economic changes after 1989 brought about a radical reversal in migration patterns and the country began to face a set of entirely new immigration phenomena. These included larger-scale irregular migration, soaring numbers of asylum seekers, labour immigration, rebuilding the legal and institutional systems, the need for migration policy and so on.
