This is a record increase since the migration crisis of 2015 and 2016. This Tuesday, September 5, the European Union Agency for Asylum (AUEA) published the figures for the number of asylum applications registered in 29 countries Europeans in the first half of 2023.
The results are unprecedented: in the area comprising the EU countries, Norway and Switzerland, these requests increased by 28% compared to the same period the previous year. In all, around 519,000 exile files were filed between January and June 2023, according to the agency. A upward trend which affects these 29 European countries differently.
Germany, Spain and France in the lead
Indeed, the AUEA shares some figures on the distribution of these asylum applications between European nations. Thus, Germany is the country that has received the most applications, with 30% of the total in the first half of 2023. The European Union Agency for Asylum reports that it is twice as many as Spain (with 17%) and France (with 16%).
During the month of June 2023, these three countries received 24,995, 12,650 and 11,485 requests respectively, according to data from the official body Eurostat. These three countries were also already at the top of the annual ranking for the year 2022.
In addition, the AUEA points out that because of this increase, many European countries “are under pressure to process requests”, quotes AFP. The number of cases awaiting decision has also increased by 34% compared to 2022.
A phenomenon also observed by other European countries: at the end of August, the United Kingdom reported a record number of asylum seekers awaiting a decision for the month of June 2023. In all, 175,457 exiles were awaiting an initial decision relating to their asylum application, i.e. 43% more than a year earlier.
Similarly, some European states are facing a saturation of their reception system. On August 29, Belgium decided to “temporarily suspend” the reception of single men within its network of accommodation for asylum seekers. A decision going against its international obligations, justified by the anticipation of a “growing influx of families and children” seeking refuge in Belgium.
Exiles from Syria, Afghanistan or Venezuela
The data shared this Tuesday by the AUEA therefore confirms this upward trend in asylum applications in Europe, already assessed in 2022. In early July, the annual report of the EU Agency for Asylum reported 996,000 cases in European countries. An already record number compared to 2015-2016, during the influx of refugees in Europe due to the stalemate of the conflict in Syria. The number of asylum seekers reached 1.3 million in 2015.
For 2023, the European agency estimates that the files of exiles could again “exceed a million by the end of the year”. Although the precise reasons for this new crisis have not yet been established, it is nevertheless observed that the main nationalities of refugees correspond to countries at war or to faltering democracies: Syrians, Afghans, Venezuelans, Turks and Colombians are the main applicants, representing 44% of queries.
Similarly, some 4 million Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion enjoy temporary protection in the EU. In total, some 41% of requests at first instance received a positive response for the first half of 2023.