Asylum: More than a million applications in Europe – Germany is the main destination country

Status: 01:20 AM| Reading time: 2 minutes

DrAccording to the European Union Asylum Agency (EUAA), the number of asylum seekers in Germany and Europe has risen significantly this year. In October alone, the authority recorded about 123,000 applications, the highest monthly value in seven years, EUAA director Nina Gregory told newspapers of the Funke media group.

The total number of asylum applications in the European Union is expected to reach “more than a million” in 2023. Gregory does not expect any relaxation, on the contrary: “The world around us is becoming more and more unstable. “The need for protection for refugees will therefore not decrease in 2024 and beyond, but in some cases will increase.” 2024 will be a “challenging year.”

According to the report, a total of about 937,000 applications were registered in the European Union by the end of October – an increase of 22 percent compared to the same period last year. According to the newspapers, in Germany alone, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) counted 325,801 asylum applications by the end of November – an increase of 52 percent compared to the first eleven months of the previous year. Germany remains the main destination country for asylum seekers in the European Union, the European Union asylum agency said.

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According to the EUAA, Germany accounted for 27% of all asylum applications in October – more than second and third countries France and Italy combined. The number of refugees from Ukraine also continued to rise. At the end of October, 4.16 million Ukrainians were registered in the EU and enjoyed temporary protection here – 320,000 more than in January, Grigory said. At the end of October, Germany was the most important receiving country in the European Union with about 1.17 million Ukrainian refugees, while Poland came in second in importance with 957,000 Ukrainians.

“The agreed Asylum and Migration Charter sends a very clear message.”

Gregory welcomed the recent agreement to reform the common European asylum system. At the same time, there were hopes for quick relief: “The new charter is not a panacea. No one should expect an immediate change, not even in the numerical development of asylum applications.”

But the agreed asylum and migration deal “sends a very clear message that the EU will take tough action against those who want to abuse refugee protection, including against smugglers.” At the same time, the EU is committed to creating a world-class protection system that is sustainable and future-proof for those who really need it.