Asylum applications fall to lowest level in EU since 2021
The EU asylum agency said 332,000 people applied in the first half of 2026, as new rules and Syria’s political shift reduced requests.
- On Sept 10, the European Union Agency reported that The European Union received 332,000 Asylum applications in the first half of 2026, a 17 per cent decline from the same period in 2025.
- The EUAA attributed the decrease to a political transition in Syria, which sharply reduced applications from its nationals, alongside the bloc's 'efforts in cooperating with countries of origin and transit' with Tunisia and Mauritania.
- France received 69,000 applications, followed by Italy with 66,000, while Spain and Germany each recorded 55,000; Greece saw the highest requests per capita at 23,000, with Afghans remaining the largest applicant group at 39,000.
- Under rules effective recently, applicants from countries with Less than 20 per cent recognition rates or those deemed 'safe' undergo expedited procedures, which the EUAA noted will impact future Asylum requests.
- Despite ongoing War in the Middle East, the agency reported no feared increase in applications from affected nations, suggesting regional instability has not yet directly driven higher Asylum pressure on The European Union borders.
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Hürriyet Daily News
EU asylum requests drop to five-year low
Asylum applications to the EU dropped to a five-year-low in the first half of 2026, continuing a downward trend partly brought about by a hardening of migration policy, the bloc's asylum agency said on Sept. 10.
In the first half of the current year, asylum applications in the European Union declined to the lowest level registered in five years, following the political transition in Syria, which led to a significant decline in Syrian asylum applications, in addition to the European Union's efforts in cooperation with countries of origin and transit, according to the European Union Asylum Agency.
The number of asylum applications in the EU and non-member states Norway and Switzerland reached its lowest point in five years for that period in the first half of 2026, reports the EU Asylum Agency EUAA. In the first half of the year, the number in the so-called EU+, at approximately 332,000 asylum applications, was 17 percent lower than in the same period in 2025.
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The applications for international protection submitted in the EU+ area, which in addition to the countries of the European Union includes Switzerland and Norway, have decreased by 17%. To register it, it is the European Union Agency for...
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