The significant drop in the number of asylum applications in Austria is a lesson for how the European Union should tighten its migration policy, Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said on Monday (July 21).

"Austria has become tougher, and Europe must also become tougher in this area," Karner said during the presentation of the asylum report for the first half of 2025.

According to Karner, around 8,600 asylum claims were lodged in Austria during this period, a decrease of 37 percent compared to the same period last year. The average decrease among all EU 27 countries was 23 percent, Karner said.

The biggest drop, Karner added, was registered among asylum applications from Syria. The stricter approach by Germany, which now turns back irregular migrants at the border, has also had positive effects, according to the minister. "This has also led to further relief here," said the member of the liberal-conservative Austrian People's Party.

In addition to the decrease in asylum applications, Karner reported that detections of unauthorized border crossings in the Austrian border regions dropped by 30 percent.

Earlier this month, Austria became the first EU country to deport a Syrian national back to Syria since the fall of President Bashar al-Assad last December. The move raised concerns that other European nations may follow suit despite ongoing instability in Syria.

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Outsourcing asylum procedures

During his remarks, Interior Minister Karner also reiterated his stance that Europe must, in the future, process asylum claims outside the EU.

Among the key reasons for the development is what Karner claims is much-improved border protection at Austria's border with Bulgaria, which together with Romania became full members of the Schengen zone of visa-free travel on January 1st of this year.

The EU gave 300 million euros to improve border protection, making it much harder and more expensive to cross the Bulgarian border illegally. According to Karber, smugglers now charge 9,000 euros, up from 1,000 euros a few years ago.

Some EU countries, such as Italy, have -- mostly in vain -- tried to turn to other countries for their immigration policy, including plans to outsource asylum processes to non-EU countries, such as Albania.

Karner further named halting family reunification in Austria among the measures in the context of asylum that are proving effective, according to him. A total of 130 family members were being reunited in May and June of this year, down from 2,000 family members during the same period last year, he said.

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The introduction of the benefits card (Sachleistungskarte), which is currently being tested in federal Austrian care centers, has proven effective, the minister went on to say, adding that asylum seekers cannot send money back to their home countries anymore since cash payouts were stopped.

According to the Interior Ministry, the benefits card is to be rolled out nationwide this year.

with dpa