New figures are in:

This is how many Syrians have applied for asylum this year

Syrians in Austria celebrate the fall of the Assad regime(Bild: MAX SLOVENCIK / APA / picturedesk.com)

The latest asylum figures show why the change of power in Damascus could have a major impact on the Austrian asylum system. This year, 12,871 applications were submitted by Syrians by the end of November. This means that citizens of this country make up more than half of all asylum seekers. In November, the number of Syrians fell, as did the total. This continued the trend of the year to date.

In view of the ongoing conflicts in the country, Syrians have definitely become the strongest nation of asylum seekers in Austria over the past decade. According to the latest asylum statistics from the Ministry of the Interior, 122,142 asylum applications were submitted by Syrians between 2015 and November of this year.

Only Afghans, with 94,653 applications, come close to them in this period. In basic care, which continues to be dominated by displaced persons from Ukraine, they are clearly the largest group of refugees outside of Europe at 22 percent.

High recognition rate for Syrians
Almost 12,000 asylum applications from Syrians were approved this year, with a recognition rate of 68%. In addition, almost 5,200 cases were granted subsidiary protection.

However, the number of applications fell in November. 737 Syrians applied for asylum, the lowest monthly figure in 2024. However, the number of applications also fell overall, which is not unusual for the approaching winter. At 1,838, the figure was well below the 2,459 applications from October.

Interior Minister Gerhard Karner (ÖVP) is in favor of an "orderly and gradual" return of Syrians to their home country.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/APA Max Slovencik/APA/picturedesk.com)

59 percent fewer applications
There were a total of 23,114 applications this year. This is a decrease of 59 percent compared to the same period in 2023. In Europe as a whole, the number of applications only fell by twelve percent. Poland and Ireland in particular, but Greece and Italy also recorded increases.

Family reunification no longer a big issue
Family reunification is no longer a major issue, which is also reflected in the gender distribution of applicants. While this was still almost balanced in spring, the majority of applications now clearly come from men again. In November, the figure was 63 percent. While there were still 2183 applications for family reunification in January, there were only 294 in November.

Sharp decline in apprehensions in Burgenland
The Ministry of the Interior claims that the decline in asylum numbers, especially in border crossings in Burgenland, is due to the massive border crossings. One of the reasons for this is the massive border point and border area controls by the police. In the first eleven months of the year, 4,321 people were apprehended in Burgenland after crossing the border illegally - in the same period in 2023, there were 29,678 apprehensions, compared to 76,072 a year earlier.