News
From file: An initial reception facility for asylum seekers in Thalham, Austria seen on October 17, 2022 | Photo: Barbara Gindl/APA
From file: An initial reception facility for asylum seekers in Thalham, Austria seen on October 17, 2022 | Photo: Barbara Gindl/APA

Austria: 29% fewer asylum claims in first half of 2023

Latest update : 2023/07/31
By Benjamin Bathke Latest update : 2023/07/31

Austria saw a nearly 30% drop in asylum applications during the first six months of 2023 compared to the same period in 2022. The government says the decline was due to consistent border controls and Serbia's stricter visa policies, among other reasons.

Some 23,000 asylum claims were filed in Austria during the first half of this year, down from around 32,000 during the same period last year.

That's according to the dpa news agency citing a statistic the Austrian Interior Ministry published on Sunday (July 30).

The ministry attributes the decline to several factors, including to the successful efforts to combat migrant smugglers, consistent border controls and fast asylum procedures, dpa reported. The end of visa-free entries for Indians and Tunisians in Serbia was another factor, the ministry said.

Prior to the introduction of visa requirements by the Serbian government, many people from India and Tunisia had been arriving in Austria via the so-called Balkan route.

Map showing Austria and surrounding countries | Source: Google Maps
Map showing Austria and surrounding countries | Source: Google Maps

At the beginning of January, Austrian authorities reported a 70% drop in the number of prevented irregular border crossings since mid-December.

In May, Austria's interior minister announced that the landlocked alpine nation was planning to extend checks at its borders with Hungary and Slovenia by an additional six months. Later in May, Austria tightened its border controls with fellow EU member state Hungary.

Read more: 'Migration is a security issue for the EU', Austrian FM says

Number in Germany way up

According to dpa, the people seeking protection in Austria mainly hailed from Syria, Afghanistan, Morocco, Turkey and Bangladesh. At the end of June, around 35,000 asylum seekers and people with refugee status received state assistance in Austria -- in addition to close to 50,000 Ukrainian refugees.

In contrast, Austria's northern neighbor Germany saw a rise of approximately 77% in first-time asylum applications, reaching around 150,000 during the first six months of the year.

In absolute numbers, Austria with its population of roughly nine million saw the fourth highest number of asylum applications in the EU last year. More than 112,000 asylum claims were lodged in 2022.

Only Germany, France and Spain saw a greater number of applications. Overall, close to one million applications were filed across the bloc's 27 member states last year, a six-year high, the EU agency for asylum (EUAA) reported in February.

Also read: NGOs alarmed over alleged evidence of illegal rejections at Germany's borders

with dpa