Reference metadata describe statistical concepts and methodologies used for the collection and generation of data. They provide information on data quality and, since they are strongly content-oriented, assist users in interpreting the data. Reference metadata, unlike structural metadata, can be decoupled from the data.
Direction Générale des Étrangers en France, Département des Statistiques, des Études at de la Documentation, 18 rue des Pyrénées – 75020 Paris, FRANCE
1.6. Contact email address
Confidential because of GDPR
1.7. Contact phone number
Confidential because of GDPR
1.8. Contact fax number
Confidential because of GDPR
2.1. Metadata last certified
22 August 2024
2.2. Metadata last posted
22 August 2024
2.3. Metadata last update
28 October 2025
3.1. Data description
Data collection on asylum statistics contains statistical information based on the Article 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3 of Regulation (EC) No 862/2007 on Community statistics on migration and international protection.
Asylum applications:
Asylum, first time and subsequent applicants by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors);
Persons subject of asylum applications pending at the end of month by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors);
Asylum applications withdrawn by citizenship, age, sex and type of withdrawal (also for unaccompanied minors);
Asylum applicants having had their applications processed under the accelerated procedure by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors);
Applicants having benefited from material reception conditions at the end of the reference year;
Asylum applicants considered to be unaccompanied minors by citizenship, age and sex.
Decisions on asylum applications:
First instance decisions on applications by citizenship, age, sex and type of decision (also for unaccompanied minors);
Decisions withdrawing status granted at first instance decision by citizenship, type of decision and type of reason (also for unaccompanied minors);
Final decisions in appeal or review on applications by citizenship, age, sex and type of decision (also for unaccompanied minors);
Decisions withdrawing status granted as final decision in appeal or review by citizenship, type of decision and type of reason (also for unaccompanied minors).
Resettled persons:
Resettled persons by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors);
Resettled persons by citizenship, age, sex and country of previous residence;
Resettled persons by citizenship, age, sex and type of decision;
Resettled persons by citizenship, age, sex and resettlement framework.
In March 2022, the European Commission activated the Temporary Protection Directive 2001/55/EC for people from Ukraine seeking refuge.
Temporary protection:
Decisions granting temporary protection by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors);
Beneficiaries of temporary protection at the end of the month by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors).
3.2. Classification system
Same as Eurostat.
Authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons is not applicable as a decision on asylum protection.
See table 3.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
3.3. Coverage - sector
Migration and asylum – Asylum statistics.
3.4. Statistical concepts and definitions
Same definitions as Eurostat.
Authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons is not applicable as a decision on asylum protection.
See table 3.4. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
3.5. Statistical unit
Persons.
3.6. Statistical population
Foreigners and stateless persons.
See table 3.6. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
3.7. Reference area
France (metropolitan and overseas territories)
3.8. Coverage - Time
Time coverage according to Regulation (EC) No 862/2007, from January 2008, eventually January 2021.
Data on first-time asylum applicants are not available from January 2008 to December 2008.
Data on pending asylum applications are not available from January 2008 to February 2008.
Data on withdrawn final decisions are not available for 2008, 2010 and 2011.
See table 3.8. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
3.9. Base period
Not applicable.
Number of persons.
Calendar month, calendar quarter and calendar year.
6.1. Institutional Mandate - legal acts and other agreements
Regulation (EC) No 862/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 July 2007 on Community statistics on migration and international protection.
6.2. Institutional Mandate - data sharing
The department collects the data from an information system in which each prefecture enters its own data. The department then process this data before transferring it to a data warehouse. Throught an internal dashboard, prefectures can view statistics relevant to their respective scopes.
7.1. Confidentiality - policy
The General Data Protection Regulation applies in France, and therefore to the Department of Statistics : data is anonymized.
Each prefecture only has access to its own data.
7.2. Confidentiality - data treatment
Data on asylum applications are aggregated.
8.1. Release calendar
Statistics are disseminated in national publications twice a year (in January & in June).
8.2. Release calendar access
Ministère de l'Intérieur - Direction générale des étrangers en France - Études et statistiques
8.3. Release policy - user access
The day of publication, a press conference is held at 11:30 am to present statistics. Statistics are published for the public on the website at 12.00 pm.
Bi-annual
10.1. Dissemination format - News release
Not applicable.
10.2. Dissemination format - Publications
Ministère de l'Intérieur - Direction générale des étrangers en France - Études et statistiques
10.3. Dissemination format - online database
Not applicable.
10.3.1. Data tables - consultations
Not applicable.
10.4. Dissemination format - microdata access
Not applicable.
10.5. Dissemination format - other
Not applicable.
10.5.1. Metadata - consultations
Not applicable.
10.6. Documentation on methodology
Not available.
10.6.1. Metadata completeness - rate
Not available.
10.7. Quality management - documentation
Not available.
11.1. Quality assurance
Asylum statistics are based on administrative sources. The quality of the data is reliable.
11.2. Quality management - assessment
Asylum statistics are based on administrative sources. The quality of the data is reliable.
12.1. Relevance - User Needs
Users of French asylum statistics:
DGEF (Direction Générale des Étrangers en France),
National authorities,
researchers and students conducting analysis and research in the field of asylum,
journalists and international organisations in the area of asylum and migration.
12.2. Relevance - User Satisfaction
The user satisfaction is monitored on a constant way through informal and formal contacts and communications with users and through requests and comments received by users.
12.3. Completeness
The status of minors (applicants) is missing for asylum applicants, first-time asylum applicants, subsequent asylum applicants, pending applications and accelerated procedure from January 2021 to December 2022.
The type of reason is missing for the withdrawal of final decisions from 2021 to 2024.
The country of previous residence and resettlement framework are missing for the resettled persons from 2021 to 2023.
See table 12.3. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
12.3.1. Data completeness - rate
Not applicable.
13.1. Accuracy - overall
The overall assessment of the accuracy of the data collection is considered to be high.
The asylum data are collected mainly through national administrative sources: from prefectures and related immigration agencies such as OFPRA (first instance decisions) & CNDA (final instance decisions).
13.2. Sampling error
Not applicable.
13.2.1. Sampling error - indicators
Not applicable.
13.3. Non-sampling error
Not applicable.
13.3.1. Coverage error
Not applicable.
13.3.1.1. Over-coverage - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.1.2. Common units - proportion
Not applicable.
13.3.2. Measurement error
Not applicable.
13.3.3. Non response error
Not applicable.
13.3.3.1. Unit non-response - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.3.2. Item non-response - rate
Not applicable.
13.3.4. Processing error
Not applicable.
13.3.5. Model assumption error
Not applicable.
14.1. Timeliness
Depending on the data periodicity, the data is provided to Eurostat by France:
Monthly data: not later than 2 months after the end of the reference period.
Quarterly data: not later than 2 months after the end of the reference period.
Annual data: not later than 3 months after the end of the reference period.
Annual data on applicants having benefited from material reception conditions: not later than 6 months after the end of the reference period.
14.1.1. Time lag - first result
Not applicable.
14.1.2. Time lag - final result
Not applicable.
14.2. Punctuality
Data are delivered on time.
See table 14.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
14.2.1. Punctuality - delivery and publication
Not applicable.
15.1. Comparability - geographical
The statistics are comparable between all regions of France, there is only one national system of accumulating and processing the data.
15.1.1. Asymmetry for mirror flow statistics - coefficient
Not applicable.
15.2. Comparability - over time
Data are comparable over time.
Data on status of minors is estimated since January 2023.
See table 15.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
15.2.1. Length of comparable time series
Not applicable.
15.3. Coherence - cross domain
Not applicable.
15.3.1. Coherence - sub annual and annual statistics
Monthly statistics do not equate to annual statistics published in France. There are slight revisions observed in data.
15.3.2. Coherence - National Accounts
Not applicable.
15.4. Coherence - internal
Internal consistency (between time, age, sex, country, citizenship) is ensured through various validation checks performed.
The types of statistics required under the Regulation (EC) No 862/2007 are needed also for national purposes, such as for the management of the national system for processing asylum applications. In almost all cases, the data is based on existing administrative and statistical systems. The specific burdens placed by the Regulation on national authorities are therefore related to the need to prepare particular disaggregation or tables that might not otherwise have been produced, and to the need to apply the harmonised statistical definitions and concepts. For some national authorities, this resulted in one-off costs associated with the necessary adaptations to methods, procedures and systems.
17.1. Data revision - policy
Following the Eurostat’s revision policy, revisions of asylum statistics are classified in three main types: routine, unscheduled error, and major revisions.
As a general rule, the routine revisions shall be delivered with an annual frequency, error revisions can be delivered any time, while major revisions are to be sent with prior notification to Eurostat and are subject of Eurostat's approval.
For monthly asylum statistics, the indicators from the previous year will be revised with final data in July of the following year.
17.2. Data revision - practice
Data on asylum applicants, first-time applicants, subsequent applicants, pending applications and accelerated procedure for the January 2023 to December 2024 revised in March 2025, due to the addition of minor status.
Data on withdrawn asylum applications for January to December 2024 revised in June 2025.
Data on applicants for international protection considered to be unaccompanied minors for 2024 revised in June 2025.
Data on first instance decisions for Q1-Q4 2024 revised in June 2025.
See table 17.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
17.2.1. Data revision - average size
The annual total may decrease by 5%.
18.1. Source data
DGEF, OFPRA, OFII and CNDA administrative data.
See table 18.1. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
18.2. Frequency of data collection
Monthly for asylum applications.
Quarterly for asylum decisions in first instance.
Annually for asylum decisions in final instance and resettled persons.
18.3. Data collection
Data on asylum statistics are collected on monthly, quarterly or annual basis.
18.4. Data validation
A set of standardised validation checks are applied by Eurostat before publishing the data. Data providers may transmit the data only in csv (comma separated value) templates (administered by Eurostat to Member States). The new validation service infrastructure is built around two components performing validation operations: one for structural validation (called STRUVAL) and one for content validation (called CONVAL).
The validation rules below are checked to ensure the internal consistency of the data:
variable codes and values of data are from a predefined set of accepted code-lists and format;
Data collection on asylum statistics contains statistical information based on the Article 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3 of Regulation (EC) No 862/2007 on Community statistics on migration and international protection.
Asylum applications:
Asylum, first time and subsequent applicants by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors);
Persons subject of asylum applications pending at the end of month by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors);
Asylum applications withdrawn by citizenship, age, sex and type of withdrawal (also for unaccompanied minors);
Asylum applicants having had their applications processed under the accelerated procedure by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors);
Applicants having benefited from material reception conditions at the end of the reference year;
Asylum applicants considered to be unaccompanied minors by citizenship, age and sex.
Decisions on asylum applications:
First instance decisions on applications by citizenship, age, sex and type of decision (also for unaccompanied minors);
Decisions withdrawing status granted at first instance decision by citizenship, type of decision and type of reason (also for unaccompanied minors);
Final decisions in appeal or review on applications by citizenship, age, sex and type of decision (also for unaccompanied minors);
Decisions withdrawing status granted as final decision in appeal or review by citizenship, type of decision and type of reason (also for unaccompanied minors).
Resettled persons:
Resettled persons by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors);
Resettled persons by citizenship, age, sex and country of previous residence;
Resettled persons by citizenship, age, sex and type of decision;
Resettled persons by citizenship, age, sex and resettlement framework.
In March 2022, the European Commission activated the Temporary Protection Directive 2001/55/EC for people from Ukraine seeking refuge.
Temporary protection:
Decisions granting temporary protection by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors);
Beneficiaries of temporary protection at the end of the month by citizenship, age and sex (also for unaccompanied minors).
28 October 2025
Same definitions as Eurostat.
Authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons is not applicable as a decision on asylum protection.
See table 3.4. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
Persons.
Foreigners and stateless persons.
See table 3.6. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
France (metropolitan and overseas territories)
Calendar month, calendar quarter and calendar year.
The overall assessment of the accuracy of the data collection is considered to be high.
The asylum data are collected mainly through national administrative sources: from prefectures and related immigration agencies such as OFPRA (first instance decisions) & CNDA (final instance decisions).
Number of persons.
Not applicable.
DGEF, OFPRA, OFII and CNDA administrative data.
See table 18.1. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
Bi-annual
Depending on the data periodicity, the data is provided to Eurostat by France:
Monthly data: not later than 2 months after the end of the reference period.
Quarterly data: not later than 2 months after the end of the reference period.
Annual data: not later than 3 months after the end of the reference period.
Annual data on applicants having benefited from material reception conditions: not later than 6 months after the end of the reference period.
The statistics are comparable between all regions of France, there is only one national system of accumulating and processing the data.
Data are comparable over time.
Data on status of minors is estimated since January 2023.
See table 15.2. in annex ‘Quality report tables Asylum’.
