Europe sees fewer asylum applications

The number of asylum applications in the EU fell, but within the European Union, Germany continues receive significantly more asylum applications than the next-leading countries, reported dpa.

The number of asylum applications in the European Union, Norway and Switzerland fell by around 12% last year, according to the Malta-based European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA).

The agency registered a total of just over a million people filed initial applications in the 27 EU member states as well as in Norway and Switzerland, according to figures obtained by dpa. In 2023, the number of applications had been 1.14 million.

According to the asylum agency, most of the applicants came from Syria (15%), followed by Afghanistan (8.7%), Venezuela (7.3%) and Turkey (5.5%).

On Thursday, Germany's Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) said that the majority of initial applications received by the country in 2024 were from people from Syria, Afghanistan and Turkey.

That's nearly 100,000 fewer people than filed for asylum in Germany in 2023, a decrease of 30.2%.

Within the European Union, Germany continues receive significantly more asylum applications than the next-leading countries: Spain, France and Italy.