EU asylum applications fall sharply in 2025

The number of asylum applications in the European Union fell again last year—this time by 20 percent year-on-year, the agency responsible for monitoring the process reported.

Preliminary data show that from the beginning of January to mid-December 2025, around 780,200 applications were registered across the 27 EU member states and partner countries Norway and Switzerland, according to a confidential report from the European Commission, CE Report quotes HINA.

The information, circulated to EU member states, was obtained by the newspaper Welt am Sonntag and reviewed by dpa.

This represents a decline of about one-fifth compared with the same period in 2024 and can largely be attributed to a drop in asylum applications from people from Syria, the report notes.

Since the fall of long-time ruler Bashar al-Assad at the end of 2024, Syrians have been hoping for a better future, resulting in less migration abroad.

Migration to Germany also declining

Germany’s Ministry of the Interior announced earlier this month that significantly fewer asylum seekers have arrived in the country. According to official data, the number of first-time applications fell by 51 percent to 113,236 in 2025 compared with 2024.

The European Commission’s report takes into account both first-time and subsequent applications.

During the reporting period, Germany recorded around 149,100 applications, followed by France with 148,600, Spain with 137,300, and Italy with 125,800 applications.

EU Commissioner pleased with the figures

Without giving exact numbers, EU Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration Magnus Brunner said that 2025 was a good year for European migration policy.

“The European Union has consistently advanced migration and asylum law reform and has implemented key parts of the legislative package,” Brunner said at the turn of the year.

This includes stronger external border protection and accelerated procedures.

“The results are clear: illegal border crossings have fallen by more than half since 2023,” the commissioner added.

foto SAMEER AL-DOUMY