The World Bank estimated the inflows of expatriates' remittances to Lebanon at $7.5bn in 2019, constituting an increase of 7.6% from $6.9bn in 2018, following a decline of 1.7% in 2018. In comparison, remittance inflows to developing countries grew by 4.4%, those to upper middle-income countries (UMICs) increased by 4.2%, and inflows to Arab countries rose by 2.7% in 2019.
 
Lebanon was the 20th largest recipient of remittances in the world and the 15th largest among 127 developing economies in 2019. Lebanon received more remittances than the Dominican Republic and Romania ($7.2bn each), and Thailand ($7.1bn), and less remittances than Guatemala ($10.62bn), Russia ($10.55bn), and Nepal ($8.1bn) among developing economies. Also, Lebanon was the fifth largest recipient of remittances among 55 UMICs, after China ($68.4bn), Mexico ($38.5bn), Guatemala and Russia, and the second largest recipient among 17 Arab countries behind Egypt ($26.8bn).
 
Further, expatriates' remittances to Lebanon were equivalent to 13.3% of GDP in 2019, which constituted the 20th highest such ratio in the world and among developing countries, the eighth highest ratio among UMICs, as well as the second highest ratio, behind only Palestine (16.3% of GDP), among Arab countries. 
 
In parallel, the World Bank projected the flow of global remittances to decline by about 20% in 2020, their steepest decline in recent history, due to the global economic crisis that the coronavirus pandemic triggered. It expected remittance inflows to developing economies to contract by 19.7% to $455bn in 2020, which represents a loss of a crucial financing lifeline for many vulnerable households. Also, it forecast remittance inflows to the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region to retreat by 19.6% to $47bn in 2020, following a growth of 2.6% in 2019. It attributed the decline in remittance inflows to the MENA region to the economic slowdown worldwide, as well as to the impact of lower oil prices on the economies of Gulf Cooperation Council countries.