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How do conviction rates in Denmark differ by origin, before and after adjusting for age and income?

In 2025, the number of residents aged 15-79 found guilty of a Penal Code offence per 100,000 of the same origin was 429.04 among persons of Danish origin, 509.67 among immigrants from Western countries, 859.84 among immigrants from non-Western countries, 988.49 among descendants from Western countries and 2074.52 among descendants from non-Western countries; in Statistics Denmark's 2024 crime index for men (all men = 100, all offences) the values were: persons of Danish origin 89 unadjusted, 92 adjusted for age and 94 adjusted for age and family income; immigrants from Western countries 97 unadjusted, 86 adjusted for age and 84 adjusted for age and family income; immigrants from non-Western countries 149 unadjusted, 137 adjusted for age and 119 adjusted for age and family income; descendants from Western countries 127 unadjusted, 116 adjusted for age and 111 adjusted for age and family income; descendants from non-Western countries 316 unadjusted, 245 adjusted for age and 219 adjusted for age and family income.

Male descendants from non-Western countries: DST crime index, not adjusted, 2024

316

index points for male descendants from non-Western countries, where all men aged 15-79 = 100 (unadjusted), 2024

Low trust, 55 of 100 Only one source (DST index), so it cannot be checked against another.

Each source by year: index points for male descendants from non-Western countries, where all men aged 15-79 = 100 (unadjusted)
0100200300400201620182020202220242016: DST index: From the 2017 edition (data 2016) DST also publishes the unadjusted index and indices standardised for age plus family education and age plus family income, after what it calls a renewed analysis of which factors can affect the index (Indvandrere i Danmark 2017, PDF pp. 106-108).

Recorded change in how a source reports; hover or focus the ring for details.

Show the data as a table
YearStatistics Denmark, Indvandrere i Danmark (yearly), crime index tables
2016319
2017334
2018345
2019341
2020337
2021341
2022325
2023328
2024316
What this number counts
Counts
Statistics Denmark's crime index for men aged 15-79 (not adjusted): people found guilty of any offence (Penal Code, traffic law and special laws) relative to all men
Where
Denmark, residents aged 15-79
When
Calendar year 2024 (published in Indvandrere i Danmark 2025) (one year, not an average)

The figure from DST index, the only source that counts here.

Where the number comes from (1 source)
SourceFigure and yearDefinitionQualityCounts for
Statistics Denmark, Indvandrere i Danmark (yearly), crime index tablesStatistics Denmark (Danmarks Statistik) · Police and justice recordsRetrieved 2026-10-27
3162024
Number convicted in the group divided by the number expected if the group had the conviction rate of all men; no standardisation.

The standardisation is DST's own. Base: all men aged 15-79 = 100, not men of Danish origin. Each person is weighted by the share of the year lived in Denmark.

Indvandrere i Danmark 2025: Tabel 6.5 (unadjusted, age), PDF p. 113; Tabel 6.7 (age + socioeconomic status / family education / family income), PDF p. 116. Series: one value per edition, each from that edition's table for its latest year (2016-2024); edition URLs and pages in scripts/denmark-crime-by-origin.manual.json.

3 of 5 checks
  • Yes: Method and definitions published. DST describes the indirect standardisation in the publication and a separate method note.
  • Yes: Official statistics or peer-reviewed. Official statistics published by Statistics Denmark.
  • Yes: Full count or representative sample. Full count of residents aged 15-79 from DST registers.
  • No: Raw data downloadable. The index is published only in PDF tables, not in StatBank.
  • No: No known break or quality problem. DST documentation section 5 says judgments registered after the early-February extraction are missing, so convicted persons are undercounted (DST judges it limited and similar each year).
100%

Better and more direct sources count for more. A source that only copies another does not count.

  • DST index100%
How the trust score was worked out
Quality24 / 40

How well the sources are made

Agreement15 / 30

Unknown with one source, so set to half

Independence6 / 20

How many separate ways the number was measured

Freshness10 / 10

How recent the newest data is

How the score works

Who reports it, and since when

Which kinds of source measure this number, which years each one published, and where the reporting stops or has holes.

No source of these kinds: victim survey, independent count.

  • Single source: nothing to check it against
  • DST index, 2008: First data year for which Indvandrere i Danmark splits the crime index into immigrants and descendants from Western and non-Western countries; the 2008 edition (data 2007, Table 7.8) showed immigrants and descendants combined, and the 2007 edition had no index. source
  • DST index, 2012: Traffic-law fines under DKK 2,500 are not in the Central Criminal Register from 2012 (threshold DKK 1,500 in 2001-2011, DKK 1,000 before); the index covers all decisions, including traffic law. source
  • DST index, 2016: From the 2017 edition (data 2016) DST also publishes the unadjusted index and indices standardised for age plus family education and age plus family income, after what it calls a renewed analysis of which factors can affect the index (Indvandrere i Danmark 2017, PDF pp. 106-108). source
Years each source has a figure here
'16'20'24DST index

figure no figure here, inside its range no later figure recorded change

Male descendants from non-Western countries: DST crime index, adjusted for age and family income, 2024

219

index points for male descendants from non-Western countries, where all men aged 15-79 = 100 (age + family income), 2024

Low trust, 55 of 100 Only one source (DST index), so it cannot be checked against another.

Each source by year: index points for male descendants from non-Western countries, where all men aged 15-79 = 100 (age + family income)
0100200300201620182020202220242016: DST index: From the 2017 edition (data 2016) DST also publishes the unadjusted index and indices standardised for age plus family education and age plus family income, after what it calls a renewed analysis of which factors can affect the index (Indvandrere i Danmark 2017, PDF pp. 106-108).

Recorded change in how a source reports; hover or focus the ring for details.

Show the data as a table
YearStatistics Denmark, Indvandrere i Danmark (yearly), crime index tables
2016207
2017208
2018205
2019205
2020215
2021221
2022210
2023214
2024219
What this number counts
Counts
Statistics Denmark's crime index for men aged 15-79 (adjusted for age and family income): people found guilty of any offence (Penal Code, traffic law and special laws) relative to all men
Where
Denmark, residents aged 15-79
When
Calendar year 2024 (published in Indvandrere i Danmark 2025) (one year, not an average)

The figure from DST index, the only source that counts here.

Where the number comes from (1 source)
SourceFigure and yearDefinitionQualityCounts for
Statistics Denmark, Indvandrere i Danmark (yearly), crime index tablesStatistics Denmark (Danmarks Statistik) · Police and justice recordsRetrieved 2026-10-27
2192024
Indirect standardisation by age and the family's disposable equivalised income.

The standardisation is DST's own. Base: all men aged 15-79 = 100, not men of Danish origin. Each person is weighted by the share of the year lived in Denmark.

Indvandrere i Danmark 2025: Tabel 6.5 (unadjusted, age), PDF p. 113; Tabel 6.7 (age + socioeconomic status / family education / family income), PDF p. 116. Series: one value per edition, each from that edition's table for its latest year (2016-2024); edition URLs and pages in scripts/denmark-crime-by-origin.manual.json.

3 of 5 checks
  • Yes: Method and definitions published. DST describes the indirect standardisation in the publication and a separate method note.
  • Yes: Official statistics or peer-reviewed. Official statistics published by Statistics Denmark.
  • Yes: Full count or representative sample. Full count of residents aged 15-79 from DST registers.
  • No: Raw data downloadable. The index is published only in PDF tables, not in StatBank.
  • No: No known break or quality problem. DST documentation section 5 says judgments registered after the early-February extraction are missing, so convicted persons are undercounted (DST judges it limited and similar each year).
100%

Better and more direct sources count for more. A source that only copies another does not count.

  • DST index100%
How the trust score was worked out
Quality24 / 40

How well the sources are made

Agreement15 / 30

Unknown with one source, so set to half

Independence6 / 20

How many separate ways the number was measured

Freshness10 / 10

How recent the newest data is

How the score works

Who reports it, and since when

Which kinds of source measure this number, which years each one published, and where the reporting stops or has holes.

No source of these kinds: victim survey, independent count.

  • Single source: nothing to check it against
  • DST index, 2008: First data year for which Indvandrere i Danmark splits the crime index into immigrants and descendants from Western and non-Western countries; the 2008 edition (data 2007, Table 7.8) showed immigrants and descendants combined, and the 2007 edition had no index. source
  • DST index, 2012: Traffic-law fines under DKK 2,500 are not in the Central Criminal Register from 2012 (threshold DKK 1,500 in 2001-2011, DKK 1,000 before); the index covers all decisions, including traffic law. source
  • DST index, 2016: From the 2017 edition (data 2016) DST also publishes the unadjusted index and indices standardised for age plus family education and age plus family income, after what it calls a renewed analysis of which factors can affect the index (Indvandrere i Danmark 2017, PDF pp. 106-108). source
Years each source has a figure here
'16'20'24DST index

figure no figure here, inside its range no later figure recorded change

Male persons of Danish origin: DST crime index, adjusted for age and family income, 2024

94

index points for male persons of Danish origin, where all men aged 15-79 = 100 (age + family income), 2024

Low trust, 55 of 100 Only one source (DST index), so it cannot be checked against another.

Each source by year: index points for male persons of Danish origin, where all men aged 15-79 = 100 (age + family income)
0255075100201620182020202220242016: DST index: From the 2017 edition (data 2016) DST also publishes the unadjusted index and indices standardised for age plus family education and age plus family income, after what it calls a renewed analysis of which factors can affect the index (Indvandrere i Danmark 2017, PDF pp. 106-108).

Recorded change in how a source reports; hover or focus the ring for details.

Show the data as a table
YearStatistics Denmark, Indvandrere i Danmark (yearly), crime index tables
201697
201796
201895
201995
202094
202193
202294
202393
202494
What this number counts
Counts
Statistics Denmark's crime index for men aged 15-79 (adjusted for age and family income): people found guilty of any offence (Penal Code, traffic law and special laws) relative to all men
Where
Denmark, residents aged 15-79
When
Calendar year 2024 (published in Indvandrere i Danmark 2025) (one year, not an average)

The figure from DST index, the only source that counts here.

Where the number comes from (1 source)
SourceFigure and yearDefinitionQualityCounts for
Statistics Denmark, Indvandrere i Danmark (yearly), crime index tablesStatistics Denmark (Danmarks Statistik) · Police and justice recordsRetrieved 2026-10-27
942024
Indirect standardisation by age and the family's disposable equivalised income.

The standardisation is DST's own. Base: all men aged 15-79 = 100, not men of Danish origin. Each person is weighted by the share of the year lived in Denmark.

Indvandrere i Danmark 2025: Tabel 6.5 (unadjusted, age), PDF p. 113; Tabel 6.7 (age + socioeconomic status / family education / family income), PDF p. 116. Series: one value per edition, each from that edition's table for its latest year (2016-2024); edition URLs and pages in scripts/denmark-crime-by-origin.manual.json.

3 of 5 checks
  • Yes: Method and definitions published. DST describes the indirect standardisation in the publication and a separate method note.
  • Yes: Official statistics or peer-reviewed. Official statistics published by Statistics Denmark.
  • Yes: Full count or representative sample. Full count of residents aged 15-79 from DST registers.
  • No: Raw data downloadable. The index is published only in PDF tables, not in StatBank.
  • No: No known break or quality problem. DST documentation section 5 says judgments registered after the early-February extraction are missing, so convicted persons are undercounted (DST judges it limited and similar each year).
100%

Better and more direct sources count for more. A source that only copies another does not count.

  • DST index100%
How the trust score was worked out
Quality24 / 40

How well the sources are made

Agreement15 / 30

Unknown with one source, so set to half

Independence6 / 20

How many separate ways the number was measured

Freshness10 / 10

How recent the newest data is

How the score works

Who reports it, and since when

Which kinds of source measure this number, which years each one published, and where the reporting stops or has holes.

No source of these kinds: victim survey, independent count.

  • Single source: nothing to check it against
  • DST index, 2008: First data year for which Indvandrere i Danmark splits the crime index into immigrants and descendants from Western and non-Western countries; the 2008 edition (data 2007, Table 7.8) showed immigrants and descendants combined, and the 2007 edition had no index. source
  • DST index, 2012: Traffic-law fines under DKK 2,500 are not in the Central Criminal Register from 2012 (threshold DKK 1,500 in 2001-2011, DKK 1,000 before); the index covers all decisions, including traffic law. source
  • DST index, 2016: From the 2017 edition (data 2016) DST also publishes the unadjusted index and indices standardised for age plus family education and age plus family income, after what it calls a renewed analysis of which factors can affect the index (Indvandrere i Danmark 2017, PDF pp. 106-108). source
Years each source has a figure here
'16'20'24DST index

figure no figure here, inside its range no later figure recorded change

Found guilty of Penal Code per 100,000 residents aged 15-79 of the same origin, 2008-2025

Each line is the source that counts most for that group.

  • Persons of Danish origin
  • Immigrants from western countries
  • Immigrants from non-western countries
  • Descendants from western countries
  • Descendants from non-western countries
02,0004,0006,00020082010201520202025
GroupFigureYearTrust
Persons of Danish origin429.04202563 Moderate
Immigrants from western countries509.67202563 Moderate
Immigrants from non-western countries859.84202563 Moderate
Descendants from western countries988.49202563 Moderate
Descendants from non-western countries2,074.52202563 Moderate
Show every year as a table
YearPersons of Danish originImmigrants from western countriesImmigrants from non-western countriesDescendants from western countriesDescendants from non-western countries
2008526.68492.781,548.961,109.733,529.11
2009573.07541.291,609.31,251.353,724.28
2010606.05578.521,628.641,117.324,364.99
2011599.27555.981,654.921,300.213,952.26
2012578.8532.691,550.371,347.713,853.97
2013528.74519.561,401.431,365.423,474.09
2014490.76512.941,301.37916.123,261.73
2015461.13486.131,189.831,086.353,119.27
2016432.32405.871,092.03971.052,886.97
2017380.91350.77998.56869.952,842.12
2018380.58366.12986.94880.832,501.97
2019396.57341.28916.32904.482,497.45
2020431.2409.58959.08901.872,576.4
2021401.74409.06933.39976.752,499.35
2022403.65453.88895.56747.092,349.27
2023460.55566.08935.491,014.972,288.82
2024444.84526.73869.031,032.462,132.52
2025429.04509.67859.84988.492,074.52

DST crime index for men, not adjusted (all men = 100), 2016-2024

Each line is the source that counts most for that group.

  • Persons of Danish origin
  • Immigrants from western countries
  • Immigrants from non-western countries
  • Descendants from western countries
  • Descendants from non-western countries
010020030040020162018202020222024
GroupFigureYearTrust
Persons of Danish origin89202455 Low
Immigrants from western countries97202455 Low
Immigrants from non-western countries149202455 Low
Descendants from western countries127202455 Low
Descendants from non-western countries316202455 Low
Show every year as a table
YearPersons of Danish originImmigrants from western countriesImmigrants from non-western countriesDescendants from western countriesDescendants from non-western countries
20169374152119319
20179279160121334
20189083169126345
20199085166122341
20208990168131337
20218896171127341
20228996156123325
202389100156128328
20248997149127316

DST crime index for men, adjusted for age (all men = 100), 2008-2024

Each line is the source that counts most for that group.

  • Persons of Danish origin
  • Immigrants from western countries
  • Immigrants from non-western countries
  • Descendants from western countries
  • Descendants from non-western countries
010020030020082010201520202024
GroupFigureYearTrust
Persons of Danish origin92202455 Low
Immigrants from western countries86202455 Low
Immigrants from non-western countries137202455 Low
Descendants from western countries116202455 Low
Descendants from non-western countries245202455 Low
Show every year as a table
YearPersons of Danish originImmigrants from western countriesImmigrants from non-western countriesDescendants from western countriesDescendants from non-western countries
20089660157104221
20099562162103227
20109565161103253
20119665154102228
20129565156100238
20139563153110230
20149564148101240
20159567143106244
20169667135106245
20179469144105245
20189372152107242
20199374151105239
20209278151114249
20219184155112253
20229284144107237
20239189144112241
20249286137116245

DST crime index for men, adjusted for age and socioeconomic status (all men = 100), 2008-2024

Each line is the source that counts most for that group.

  • Persons of Danish origin
  • Immigrants from western countries
  • Immigrants from non-western countries
  • Descendants from western countries
  • Descendants from non-western countries
010020030020082010201520202024
GroupFigureYearTrust
Persons of Danish origin93202455 Low
Immigrants from western countries81202455 Low
Immigrants from non-western countries124202455 Low
Descendants from western countries115202455 Low
Descendants from non-western countries242202455 Low
Show every year as a table
YearPersons of Danish originImmigrants from western countriesImmigrants from non-western countriesDescendants from western countriesDescendants from non-western countries
20089852133102217
20099850138101225
2010975213498245
2011985212798221
2012975612897231
20139854127108220
2014985712299229
20159761118105237
20169861113106240
20179763120104241
20189566126106237
20199569129104235
20209374134113245
20219279140110250
20229479129104235
20239383129110239
20249381124115242

DST crime index for men, adjusted for age and family income (all men = 100), 2016-2024

Each line is the source that counts most for that group.

  • Persons of Danish origin
  • Immigrants from western countries
  • Immigrants from non-western countries
  • Descendants from western countries
  • Descendants from non-western countries
010020030020162018202020222024
GroupFigureYearTrust
Persons of Danish origin94202455 Low
Immigrants from western countries84202455 Low
Immigrants from non-western countries119202455 Low
Descendants from western countries111202455 Low
Descendants from non-western countries219202455 Low
Show every year as a table
YearPersons of Danish originImmigrants from western countriesImmigrants from non-western countriesDescendants from western countriesDescendants from non-western countries
20169770117100207
20179672121100208
20189573123102205
2019957512399205
20209478126109215
20219382129107221
20229484122104210
20239387124108214
20249484119111219

Found guilty of sexual offences per 100,000 residents aged 15-79 of the same origin, 2008-2025

Each line is the source that counts most for that group.

  • Persons of Danish origin
  • Immigrants from western countries
  • Immigrants from non-western countries
  • Descendants from western countries
  • Descendants from non-western countries
025507510020082010201520202025
GroupFigureYearTrust
Persons of Danish origin21.49202563 Moderate
Immigrants from western countries12.58202563 Moderate
Immigrants from non-western countries29.13202563 Moderate
Descendants from western countries47.39202563 Moderate
Descendants from non-western countries59.8202563 Moderate
Show every year as a table
YearPersons of Danish originImmigrants from western countriesImmigrants from non-western countriesDescendants from western countriesDescendants from non-western countries
200812.0812.2124.8333.9764.93
200913.5311.7732.1332.3637.42
201014.4713.329.1110.9533.76
201112.839.4725.8821.1425.69
201213.857.2129.0629.9519.06
201312.29.6731.269.8217.32
201410.877.0124.1128.6319.45
201511.649.2122.3318.5725.98
201611.756.1925.3636.331.36
201711.6410.4133.0217.7535.98
201812.68.2429.498.6427.11
201930.6410.0726.3525.3683.65
202019.6112.149.1416.5565.38
202118.9914.4845.8248.4362.1
202219.6515.645.317.8664.51
202323.1619.1438.9336.5164.66
202422.1414.6232.2728.2935.38
202521.4912.5829.1347.3959.8

Found guilty of violent crime per 100,000 residents aged 15-79 of the same origin, 2008-2025

Each line is the source that counts most for that group.

  • Persons of Danish origin
  • Immigrants from western countries
  • Immigrants from non-western countries
  • Descendants from western countries
  • Descendants from non-western countries
05001,0001,50020082010201520202025
GroupFigureYearTrust
Persons of Danish origin110.17202563 Moderate
Immigrants from western countries67.82202563 Moderate
Immigrants from non-western countries181.91202563 Moderate
Descendants from western countries243.74202563 Moderate
Descendants from non-western countries624.66202563 Moderate
Show every year as a table
YearPersons of Danish originImmigrants from western countriesImmigrants from non-western countriesDescendants from western countriesDescendants from non-western countries
2008141.3100.69411.73328.391,194.77
2009141.17106.6425.44237.321,168.51
2010155.2497.09426.04306.711,316.51
2011143.3283.93392.78317.121,020.77
2012135.2791.88348.74279.521,022.79
201311881.38301.49245.58860.34
2014103.1577.13267.09181.32823.83
2015105.3574.71274.49232.13764.8
2016102.8770.03265.21217.81737.8
2017108.8374.23293.94230.8900.79
2018109.964.2302.87284.97831.41
2019110.5761.29261.94287.4835.31
2020121.4380.08275.03264.77906.21
2021106.5976.1253.07314.82731.06
2022108.7481.5225.67220.2689.8
2023120.0288.34226.84262.87693.31
2024109.1566.69202.15289.94579.51
2025110.1767.82181.91243.74624.66

Share of the population by origin (all ages, 1 January), 1980-2026

Each line is the source that counts most for that group.

  • Persons of Danish origin
  • Immigrants from western countries
  • Immigrants from non-western countries
  • Descendants from western countries
  • Descendants from non-western countries
0255075100198019902000201020202026
GroupFigureYearTrust
Persons of Danish origin83.7202571 Moderate
Immigrants from western countries5.1202571 Moderate
Immigrants from non-western countries7.4202571 Moderate
Descendants from western countries0.7202571 Moderate
Descendants from non-western countries3202571 Moderate
Show every year as a table
YearPersons of Danish originImmigrants from western countriesImmigrants from non-western countriesDescendants from western countriesDescendants from non-western countries
1980971.80.90.20.1
1981971.80.90.20.2
198296.91.70.90.20.2
198396.91.710.20.2
198496.91.710.20.2
198596.81.710.20.3
198696.61.81.20.20.3
198796.41.81.40.20.3
198896.21.81.50.20.4
1989961.81.60.20.4
199095.81.81.80.20.5
199195.61.81.90.20.5
199295.41.820.20.6
199395.11.82.20.20.6
199494.91.92.30.20.7
199594.71.92.40.20.8
199694.122.80.20.9
199793.7230.21
199893.42.13.20.31.1
199993.22.13.30.31.2
200092.92.13.50.31.3
200192.62.13.70.31.4
200292.32.13.90.31.5
2003922.240.31.6
200491.82.24.10.31.6
200591.62.24.10.31.7
200691.52.34.20.31.8
200791.22.44.20.31.8
200890.92.64.30.31.9
200990.52.84.50.32
201090.22.94.50.32
201189.93.14.60.32.1
201289.63.24.70.32.1
201389.33.44.80.42.2
201488.93.64.90.42.3
201588.43.75.10.42.3
201687.745.50.42.4
201787.14.15.80.52.5
201886.74.35.90.52.6
201986.34.46.10.52.7
202086.14.46.10.62.7
2021864.56.10.62.8
202285.64.76.20.62.9
202384.64.96.80.72.9
202484.25.17.10.73
202583.75.17.40.73
202683.25.27.70.73.1

About this data

Every source on this page (3)

Who is behind the sources

  • 100% Statistics office
Each publisher, its funding and its own description
  • Statistics Denmark (DST) · Statistics officeFunding: Danish state budget. sourceIn its own words: “Our mission is to collect, compile and publish statistics on the Danish society.” source, retrieved 2026-10-27
  • Statistics Denmark, Indvandrere i Danmark (yearly), crime index tablesStatistics Denmark (DST) (statistics office) · Police and justice recordsUsed for 20 numbers; counts toward 20. Years 2024. Retrieved 2026-10-27.Open the publisher's page
  • Statistics Denmark, StatBank STRFNA10 (persons guilty) and FOLK1E (population)Statistics Denmark (DST) (statistics office) · Police and justice recordsUsed for 15 numbers; counts toward 15. Years 2025. Retrieved 2026-10-27.Open the publisher's page
  • Statistics Denmark, StatBank IEPCTStatistics Denmark (DST) (statistics office) · Population registerUsed for 5 numbers; counts toward 5. Years 2025. Retrieved 2026-10-27.Open the publisher's page
Why the numbers differ (6)
  • Two different measures. The rates count both sexes and Penal Code offences only. DST's crime index counts men only and every decision, including traffic-law and special-law cases, and its base is all men (= 100), so men of Danish origin score 89 unadjusted in 2024. (source, retrieved 2026-10-27)
  • Age. Younger people are convicted more often, and the groups differ in age. In 2024, adjusting for age moves the index for male descendants from non-Western countries from 316 to 245, and for male immigrants from non-Western countries from 149 to 137 (Table 6.5). (source, retrieved 2026-10-27)
  • Which factor is adjusted for. DST publishes four adjusted versions for 2024. For male descendants from non-Western countries: age 245, age + socioeconomic status 242, age + family education 203, age + family income 219; for male immigrants from non-Western countries: 137, 124, 123 and 119 (Table 6.7). DST does not publish an index adjusted for several of these at once. (source, retrieved 2026-10-27)
  • Who is counted. DST counts only people living in Denmark on 1 January and/or 31 December of the year; people who both arrived and left during the year, tourists and others without a Danish personal number are left out of these figures but are in DST's separate statistics on decisions (Domme).
  • Police activity. DST notes that police priorities, such as speed checks or nightlife operations, affect how many people are convicted under traffic and special laws, which are in the index but not in the Penal Code rates.
  • Rates here use the population on 1 January, while the count includes people who lived in Denmark only on 31 December; DST's own index weights each person by the share of the year lived in Denmark.
Common mistakes (3)
  • Reading the index as relative to people of Danish origin. The base is all men (= 100). Men of Danish origin score 92 after age adjustment in 2024, so a group's ratio to Danish origin is its index divided by that value. (source, retrieved 2026-10-27)
  • Confusing a group's share of convicted people with its rate. Immigrants from non-Western countries were 7.4% of the population on 1 January 2025; a group's share of convictions depends on its size, its age profile and its rate. (source, retrieved 2026-10-27)
  • Reading year-to-year changes in small groups. Sexual-offence counts for descendants from Western countries are in single digits most years, so their rates move a lot from one year to the next. (source, retrieved 2026-10-27)
Context (4)
Sources considered and not used (5)
  • DST crime index before data year 2008: The 2008 edition (data 2007) shows immigrants and descendants combined, and the 2007 edition has no index, so they do not match the four groups shown here. (source, retrieved 2026-10-27)
  • Conviction rates by Western/non-Western ancestry before 2008: DST's population tables before FOLK1E (BEF3, FOLK2) give ancestry only as immigrants, descendants and Danish origin plus country of origin, without the Western/non-Western grouping; RealStats does not regroup countries itself. (source, retrieved 2026-10-27)
  • DST index adjusted for age and family education: Shown in the explanation of differences rather than as its own number, to keep the page to the adjustments named in the question (age, income) plus DST's long-running socioeconomic-status version.
  • StatBank STRFNA12-STRFNA14 (guilty persons by citizenship): Break the groups down by citizenship only from 2018; this page uses DST's ancestry groups. (source, retrieved 2026-10-27)
  • StatBank STRAFNA3-STRAFNA5 (guilty persons by country of origin): Country-level counts; the page shows DST's Western/non-Western groups. (source, retrieved 2026-10-27)
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