Asylum statistics

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Data from September 2011, most recent data: Further Eurostat information, Main tables and Database.

This article describes recent developments in international protection, presenting information on the numbers of asylum applicants and decisions on asylum applications in the European Union (EU).

The analysis focuses on characteristics of asylum applicants (country of origin, age and gender) as well as decisions on asylum applications. Most of the statistics displayed in this article were collected under the regulatory framework of Regulation (EC) 862/2007 on migration and international protection statistics.

Main statistical findings

Figure 1: Asylum applications (non-EU-27) in the EU-27 Member States, 2000-2010 (1)
(1 000) - Source: Eurostat (migr_asyctz) and (migr_asyappctza)

Table 1: Countries of origin of (non-EU-27) asylum seekers in the EU-27 Member States, 2009 and 2010 (1)
(number) - Source: Eurostat (migr_asyappctza)

Table 2: Number of (non-EU-27) asylum applicants in the EU and EFTA Member States and their age distribution, 2010 - Source: Eurostat (migr_asyappctza) and (migr_asyunaa)

Figure 2: Share of male (non-EU-27) asylum applicants in the EU-27, by age group and status of minors, 2010
(%) - Source: Eurostat (migr_asyappctza) and (migr_asyunaa)

Table 3: Five main citizenships of (non-EU-27) asylum applicants, 2010 (1)
(number, rounded figures) - Source: Eurostat (migr_asyappctza)

Table 4: First instance decisions on (non-EU-27) asylum applications, 2010
(number) - Source: Eurostat (migr_asyappctza)

Table 5: Final decisions on (non-EU-27) asylum applications, 2010
(number) - Source: Eurostat (migr_asyappctza)

Asylum applications

In recent years, there has been a sharp decrease in the number of asylum applicants in the EU. Having peaked in 1992 (670 000 applications in the EU-15) and again in 2001 (424 200 applications in the EU-27), there were an estimated 258 950 asylum applications received in the EU-27 in 2010 (see Figure 1).

This figure constituted a slight decrease of 5 050 applicants when compared with the year before, in part due to a lower number of applications from Zimbabwe, Somalia, Georgia, Nigeria and Iraq (see Table 1). In contrast, there was a sizeable increase of more than 12 000 Serbian applicants between 2009 and 2010 and of more than 6 000 applicants from the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia; as a result, both of these countries moved into the top ten countries of origin of asylum seekers in the EU-27. Nevertheless, Afghanistan and Russia remained the two most common countries of origin for asylum seekers in the EU.

The number of asylum applications and their relative importance (for example, as a percentage of the total population) vary considerably between Member States. The highest number of applications for asylum in 2010 was lodged in France, while Germany, Sweden, Belgium and the United Kingdom, were the other main recipients of applications (see Table 2). The number of asylum claims lodged in these five Member States accounted for more than two thirds (70.6 %) of the total number of applications lodged in the EU-27.

Out of each 20 asylum applicants in the EU-27 in 2010, on average close to 6 were minors, of which 1 was unaccompanied, 10 were young adults aged between 18 and 34 years and the remaining 4 persons were aged 35 and older (see Table 2). An unaccompanied minor is a person below the age of 18 who arrives on the territory of a Member State unaccompanied by an adult responsible for them or a minor who is left unaccompanied after having entered the territory of a Member State. Out of the 71 350 asylum applicants in the EU-27 who were minors in 2010, some 10 700 (excluding the Czech Republic) were unaccompanied.

Across the EU-27 as a whole, the gender distribution tends to be more balanced for asylum applicants aged less than 14 than for asylum applicants aged 14-17 or 18-34 for which around 14 out of 20 applicants were men. Male applicants were even more represented when considering the group of unaccompanied minors (see Figure 2) as approximately four in every five unaccompanied minors were male. Women outnumbered men only in the group of asylum seekers aged 65 and over though this group is relatively small and accounted for around 1 930 individuals in 2010.

The historical ties between countries of origin and destination, former colonies for instance, which often implies a certain knowledge of the language used in the host country, the presence of established ethnic communities, and the economic situation of countries may also be taken into consideration by asylum seekers. These pull factors largely overlap with the drivers of other non-asylum migration flows. However, other factors such as the perceived likelihood that the destination country will grant a protection status or the benefits connected to a protection status in the country of destination are specific to asylum seekers. Table 3 provides an overview of the five main citizenships of asylum applicants in each Member State.

Decisions on asylum applications

In 2010, a quarter (25.0 %) of EU-27 first instance asylum decisions resulted in positive outcomes with the grants of a refugee, subsidiary protection status or authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons, while the share was slightly lower (21.5 %) for final decisions (based on appeal or review). For first instance decisions, close to half (48.7 %) of all positive decisions granted in the EU-27 in 2010 consisted of refugee status, while for final decisions the share was notably higher, over two thirds (70.7 %). In absolute numbers, some 41 180 persons were granted refugee status, 24 695 subsidiary protection and 9 674 authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons. A wide diversity in the handling of asylum applications between Member States may be observed which is partly due to the differing citizenships of applicants in each Member State but may also reflect the current asylum and migration policies applied in each country.

In absolute terms, the highest number of positive asylum decisions in 2010 was recorded in the United Kingdom (14 070), followed by Germany (12 910), France (10 375), Sweden (9 760) and the Netherlands (8 680). Altogether, these five Member States represented close to three quarter (73.9 %) of the total number of positive decisions issued in EU Member States. Though refugee and subsidiary protection status are defined by EU law, humanitarian reasons are specific to the national legislation and relate to authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons under national law concerning international protection, which explains why this latter protection status is not applicable in certain Member States.

Data sources and availability

Eurostat produces statistics on a range of issues relating to international migration. Between 1986 and 2007, data on asylum was collected on the basis of a gentlemen’s agreement. Since 2008 data have been provided to Eurostat under the provisions of Article 4 of Regulation (EC) 862/2007. Data are provided to Eurostat with a monthly frequency (for asylum application statistics), quarterly frequency (for first instance decisions) or annual frequency (for final decisions based on appeal or review, resettlement and unaccompanied minors). The statistics are based on administrative sources and are supplied to Eurostat by statistical authorities, home office ministries/ministries of the interior, or related immigration agencies in the Member States.

Two different categories of persons should be taken into account when analysing asylum statistics. The first includes asylum-seekers who have lodged a claim (asylum applications) and whose claim is under consideration by a relevant authority. The second is composed of persons who have been recognised, after consideration, as refugees or have been granted another kind of international protection (subsidiary protection) or were granted protection on the basis of the national law related to international protection (authorisations to stay for humanitarian reasons) or were rejected from having any form of protection. Since the entry into force of Regulation (EC) 862/2007, asylum decisions statistics have been made available at difference stages of the asylum procedure. First instance decisions are decisions granted by the respective authority acting as a first instance of the administrative/judicial asylum procedure in the receiving country. In contrast, final decisions in appeal or review relate to decision granted at the final instance of administrative/judicial asylum procedure and which result from an appeal lodged by an asylum seeker rejected in the preceding stage. Since asylum procedures and the number/levels of decision making bodies differ among the Member States, the true final instance may be, according to the national legislation and administrative procedures, a decision of the highest national court. However, the applied methodology defines that final decisions should refer to what is effectively a final decision in the vast majority of cases: in other words, that all normal routes of appeal have been exhausted.

Context

The 1951 Geneva Convention relating to the status of refugees (as amended by the 1967 New York Protocol) has for almost 60 years defined who is a refugee, and laid down a common approach towards refugees that has been one of the cornerstones for the development of a common asylum system within the EU. Asylum is a form of protection given by a state on its territory. It is granted to a person who is unable to seek protection in his/her country of citizenship and/or residence, in particular for fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion. Since 1999, the EU has worked towards creating a common European asylum regime in accordance with the Geneva Convention and other applicable international instruments. A number of directives in this area have been developed, the four main legal instruments on asylum including:

the Reception Conditions Directive 2003/9/EC laying down minimum standards for the reception of asylum seekers;

the Asylum Procedures Directive 2005/85/EC on minimum standards on procedures in Member States for granting and withdrawing refugee status;

the Qualification Directive 2004/83/EC 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;

the Dublin Regulation (EC) 343/2003 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.

The Hague programme was adopted by heads of state and government on 5 November 2004. It puts forward the idea of a common European asylum system (CEAS), in particular, it raises the challenge to establish common procedures and uniform status for those granted asylum or subsidiary protection. The European Commission) adopted on 17 February 2006 a Communication on ‘strengthened practical cooperation’ (COM(2006) 67 final), presenting a vision of how Member States could further cooperate on asylum.

The European Commission’s policy plan on asylum (COM(2008) 360) was presented in June 2008 which included three pillars to underpin the development of the CEAS:

bringing more harmonisation to standards of protection by further aligning the Member States' asylum legislation;
effective and well-supported practical cooperation;
increased solidarity and sense of responsibility among EU Member States, and between the EU and non-member countries.

In May 2010, the European Commission presented an action plan for unaccompanied minors (COM(2010) 213), who are the most exposed and vulnerable victims of migration. This plan aims to set-up a coordinated approach and commits all Member States to grant high standards of reception, protection and integration for unaccompanied minors. As a complement to this action plan, the European migration network has produced a comprehensive EU study on reception policies, as well as return and integration arrangements for unaccompanied minors.