Archive:Asylum quarterly report
- Data from March 2014. Most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database.
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Asylum applicants and first instance decisions on asylum applications: fourth quarter 2013
20 % more asylum applicants in the EU-28 during the fourth quarter of 2013, compared with the fourth quarter of 2012
There was a large increase in asylum applicants in the fourth quarter of 2013 compared with the same quarter of the previous year[1]. More than 123 000 asylum seekers applied for asylum in the EU-28. This represents an increase of about 20 500, or 20 per cent more compared with the fourth quarter of 2012.
Persons from 141 countries plus stateless persons applied for a type of international protection in the EU-28, with Syrians, Serbians and Afghanis lodging the highest numbers of asylum applications in absolute terms (19 295, 8 630 and 7 730 respectively).
Four main destination countries - Germany, Sweden, France and Italy - accepted about 70 per cent of all asylum applications in the EU-28 in the fourth quarter of 2013 (41 050, 18 765, 16 880 and 9 150 respectively).
Reflecting the civil and political crises in North Africa, the citizenships recording the highest relative increases in applicants were Egyptians, stateless persons and Gambians (3 times more) and Eritreans, Syrians and Senegalese (more than 2 times more). Accordingly, the destination countries recording the highest relative increases in asylum applicants were Bulgaria (4 times more), followed by Portugal and Hungary (more than 4 times more).
More than 93 000 first instance decisions on asylum applications were issued, of which one third were positive, granting a protection status. Of every 10 positive decisions, around 4 granted refugee status, compared to 5 granting subsidiary protection status and 1 granting protection for humanitarian reasons.
Main statistical findings
Increase in asylum applicants
The number of asylum applicants increased by 20 % in the fourth quarter of 2013 compared with the same quarter of the previous year[2]. Overall, the number of persons seeking international protection in the EU-28 in the fourth quarter of 2013 reached 123 340. This was 20 420 more than in the same quarter of 2012 (Table 1).
Where do they come from?
Citizens of 141 countries together with stateless persons sought asylum in the EU in the fourth quarter of 2013. The main 3 citizenships were Syrians, Serbians and Afghanis, lodging 19 295, 8 630 and 7 730 asylum applications respectively (Table 2).
Syrians, as well as Eritreans added most to the overall increase in asylum applicants in absolute terms (9 870 and 3 605 more applicants respectively) (Figure 3, Table 2).
Due to civil and political conflicts in North Africa, Egyptian, Gambian and Eritrean asylum applicants recorded by far the largest increases during the fourth quarter of 2013. Egyptians increased threefold and Gambians and Eritreans more than doubled, recording 1 940, 1 320 and 6 040 asylum applications respectively.
Notably, the number of applications by stateless citizens almost doubled in the fourth quarter of 2014 (3 750 applicants) (Figure 3, Table 2).
Main destination countries
The largest numbers of applications for international protection were lodged in Germany, Sweden, France and Italy in the fourth quarter of 2014 (41 050, 18 765, 16 880 and 9 150 respectively), representing almost 70 per cent of the overall applications in the EU-28.
Countries that previously were receiving few numbers of asylum applicants are now seeing huge increases in asylum seekers. Such countries are Bulgaria, where the numbers of asylum applicants have quintupled (3 167) and Hungary (2 754) with more than three times more asylum applicants, compared with the fourth quarter 2012.
The country with the highest number of applicants relative to its population in fourth quarter 2013 was Sweden with almost 2 000 applicants per million inhabitants (Figure 2, Table 1).
Of the 17 EU Member States that recorded increases in asylum applicants, Germany and Sweden recorded the highest increases in absolute terms (12 870 and 4 635 more applications respectively) (Figure 2, Table 1). In contrast, Belgium and Poland recorded the largest decreases in absolute terms (2 395 and 2 235 fewer applicants each). Slovenia and Poland were the countries having the largest percentage decreases with respect to the same quarter of the previous year (about 70 % and 60 % fewer applicants each) (Figure 2 and Table 1).
What is their age and sex?
Almost 8 in 10 of the 123 340 asylum applicants in the EU-28 were below the age of 35 and 1 out of 5 was a minor[3]. Nearly half of the Russians, Serbians and applicants from Bosnia and Herzegovina were minors and around 80 % of Ghanaians, Malians and Senegalese were aged 18-34 (Table 4).
With respect to gender, 33 % of asylum applicants in the EU were of female gender. For Senegalese and Bangladeshi citizens, the proportion is even lower (around 6 % of asylum seekers were women). In contrast, for citizens of the China, Congo and Armenia, the ratio of women to men was 1 to 1 (Figure 4, Figure 5).
Decisions on asylum applications
93 215 first instance decisions were made by the national authorities of EU Member States during the fourth quarter of 2013. Amongst them, 1 out of 3 decisions were positive, granting asylum or some other form of international protection. Germany, France and Sweden issued the most first instance total decisions[4] in the fourth quarter of 2013 (22 935, 14 500 and 9 925 respectively). Germany and Sweden also granted the most positive decisions in the EU-28 (Table 9).
Germany issued the most decisions granting refugee status (3 195), Sweden the most decisions granting subsidiary protection (6 510) and The Netherlands issued the most decisions granting protection for humanitarian reasons (1 485). (Table 9, Table 10).
In terms of citizenship, most decisions were issued to Syrians (12 695), Russians (7 975), Serbians (5 510) and Afghans (5 165). The citizenships granted the most positive decisions (i.e. a type of international protection) were Syrians, stateless persons, Afghans, Somalis and Eritreans (Figure 7, Table 11). Specifically, 9 out of 10 decisions issued to Syrians were positive; while those issued to Russians and Serbians were mostly negative.
Data sources and availability
The data used for this publication are provided to Eurostat by the Ministries of Interior, Justice or immigration agencies of the Member States. Data are based entirely on relevant administrative sources. Apart from statistics on new asylum applicants, these data are supplied by Member States according to the provisions of Article 4 of the Regulation (EC) 862/2007 of 11 July 2007 on Community statistics on migration and international protection. All data presented in this publication are rounded to the nearest 5. All data presented in this article are provisional (except as otherwise stated) and may be a subject to change.
Country information:
The number of rejections at first instance in Italy includes a number of recommendations to issue an authorization to stay for humanitarian reasons. These recommendations are issued by the National Asylum Commission to the Police. Such recommendation does not guarantee the grant of an authorization to stay for humanitarian reason, and therefore the number of first instance rejections is overestimated. Indeed, some individuals might be counted twice under the same reference period: first as a person rejected and recommended for an authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons and subsequently as a person granted an authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons.
Context
EU Asylum policy:
The Directorate-General for Home Affairs (DG HOME) is responsible for developing EU policies on asylum.
Further Eurostat information
Publications
- Asylum applicants and first instance decisions on asylum applications: fourth quarter 2011 Statistics in focus 11/2012
- Number of Asylum applicants on rise during the first quarter of 2011 Statistics in focus 48/2011
Main tables
- Population, see:
- Population (t_populat)
- International Migration and Asylum (t_migr)
- Asylum applications (tps00021)
- Asylum decisions (tps00163)
- Asylum rejections (tps00164)
- International Migration and Asylum (t_migr)
Database
- Population, see:
- Population (populat)
- International Migration and Asylum (migr)
- Asylum (migr_asy)
- International Migration and Asylum (migr)
Dedicated section
Other information
- Regulation 862/2007 of 11 July 2007 on Community statistics on migration and international protection
- Directive 83/2004 of 29 April 2004 on minimum standards for the qualification and status of third country nationals or stateless persons as refugees or as persons who otherwise need international protection and the content of the protection granted
- Regulation 343/2003 of 18 February 2003 establishing the criteria and mechanisms for determining the Member State responsible for examining an asylum application lodged in one of the Member States by a third-country national
External links
- European Commission - Home Affairs - Asylum
- European Asylum Support Office - EASO
- European Migration Network - EMN
- UNHCR - Statistics
See also
Notes
- ↑ The analysis of this article refers only to annual changes between the fourth quarter of 2013 and the fourth quarter of 2012, unless otherwise stated.
- ↑ Asylum applicants increased also by 4% compared to the previous quarter of the same year, 2013.
- ↑ Minors are persons under the age of 18.
- ↑ Total decisions equal to positive decisions plus negative decisions.