Post on 26-Jul-2020
transcript
European Asylum Support Office
SUPPORT IS OUR MISSION
EASO
Quarterly Asylum Report
Quarter 3, 2015
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 2
Contents
Summary .................................................................................................................................... 4
Section 1: Trends in applications for international protection ................................................. 5
Applicants for international protection in the EU+ .......................................................... 5
Profile of applicants for international protection in Europe ............................................ 8
Country of destination ...................................................................................................... 9
Section 2: Trends in decisions at first instance ....................................................................... 11
Numbers of decisions ..................................................................................................... 11
Recognition Rate ............................................................................................................. 13
Type of protection granted ............................................................................................. 15
Section 3: Key trends in focus ................................................................................................. 20
Syria ................................................................................................................................ 20
Western Balkans ............................................................................................................. 23
Afghanistan ..................................................................................................................... 26
Iraq .................................................................................................................................. 28
Annex I – Statistical overview .................................................................................................. 32
Overview of asylum a pplicants, withdrawn applications and pending cases registered
in the EU+ by main citizenship, Q2 2014 – Q3 2015 ....................................................... 32
Overview of first-instance decisions issued in the EU+ by main citizenship, Q2 2014 –
Q3 2015 ........................................................................................................................... 33
Annex II – List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................... 34
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 3
Introduction
The EASO Quarterly Asylum Report is produced by EASO’s Centre for Information,
Documentation and Analysis. It aims to provide an overview of key asylum trends by analysing
data on applications for international protection, pending cases and decisions made on
applications by EU Member States and Associated Countries1.
The analysis is based on data2 submitted to Eurostat as per Article 4 of the Migration Statistics
Regulation3 and extracted from the Eurostat database on 18 January 20164.
It is important to note that the Eurostat Technical Guidelines for the data collection5 were
amended in December 2013 and subsequently entered into force in the reference month of
January 2014. The change affects the backward comparability of 2015 data. The main changes
in the Eurostat Technical Guidelines for the data collection that affect the above comparison
are:
clarification of the first-time and repeated applicant concepts;
addition of an instruction on how persons subject to a Dublin procedure should be
counted in the pending cases table;
instruction not to report Dublin cases as negative asylum decisions6;
clarification of the concept of humanitarian protection.
1 Referred to in the content of the report as “EU+”. This includes data from EU28, Norway and Switzerland. 2 Figures published on the Eurostat database are rounded to the nearest “5” or “0”. The number presented in this report may therefore differ when analysed separately (by a single EU+ country, citizenship or indicator). 3 Regulation (EC) No 862/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 July 2007 on Community statistics on migration and international protection and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 311/76 on the compilation of statistics on foreign workers [2007] OJ L199/23 http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX:32007R0862. 4 According to the Migration Statistics Regulation, data on first instance decisions are provided by Member States and Associated countries to Eurostat on a quarterly basis and with a 2-month deadline for submission. Data on applicants and pending cases are monthly but have the same 2-month deadline for submission. These timelines explain the delay with which EASO quarterly reports are produced. 5 http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_SDDS/Annexes/migr_asyapp_esms_an3.pdf 6 This change had the purpose of enhancing the comparability of decision statistics across EU+ countries and providing more relevant recognition rates. This change should be taken into account when making comparisons between the data collected under the former Eurostat guidelines and the current Eurostat guidelines.
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 4
Summary Trends in applicants for international protection
The total number of asylum applicants rose by 89 % (459 975) compared to the previous
quarter (Q2 2015: 242 845) reaching the highest quarterly total since data collection
started in 2008. In comparison with the number of applicants registered in the same
quarters of 2014 and 2013, the increase was even larger: +135 % and + 255 %,
respectively.
Three times more applications by Syrians were registered in EU+ countries in Q3 2015
than in Q2, totalling more than 148 000. Syrian applicants were predominant compared
to the other main nationalities applying for international protection in EU+ countries.
Apart from Syria, the top five citizenships of asylum applicants was made up of
Afghanistan, Western Balkan nationalities as a group (mostly Kosovo and Albania), Iraq
and Pakistan, combined accounting for 72 % of all applications in Q3 2015.
Germany and Hungary were still the main countries of destination, receiving 50 % of the
total of asylum applicants registered in the EU+ in Q3 2015. Hungary reported the largest
absolute increase compared to Q2, with 75 935 more applications. Most EU+ countries
saw their totals increasing.
Trends in decisions at first instance
142 070 first-instance decisions on international protection were issued at EU+ level, an increase of 14 % compared to Q2 2015.
The average recognition rate based on all first-instance decisions issued in the EU+ was 48 %, similar to Q2 2015.
In 14 EU+ countries, more than half of the first-instance decisions issued were positive and resulted in the granting of refugee status, subsidiary protection or humanitarian protection7.
The stock of pending cases increased strongly at the end of September 2015, totalling 842 875, or 37 % more than the level recorded at the end of June 20158.
Key trends in focus
Syria – Syrian applicants remained the main citizenship of applicants for international protection. The number of Syrian applicants rose throughout Q3 2015 to reach 148 460 applications, triple the number compared to Q2. This substantial increase overshadowed the increases recorded for other nationalities.
Western Balkans – After the major drop in applications from the six Western Balkan countries in Q2 2015, Q3 saw the numbers increase again by 10 %, mostly due to more applications by Albanian nationals.
Afghanistan – Afghan applicants doubled for the second consecutive quarter and, with 61 905 applications, reached a new quarterly high.
Iraq – Asylum applicants from Iraq increased three-fold compared to Q2 2015, reaching an unprecedented 47 485 applicants in Q3.
7 Reported as: authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons under national law concerning international protection 8 At the time of writing, no data for Austria was available. Also, no data has been available for pending cases for an extended period from Cyprus from May 2011-2013 (excluding December 2012) and the Netherlands for the entire period 2012-2014.
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 5
Section 1: Trends in applications for international protection Applicants for international protection in the EU+ The total number of asylum applicants in the third quarter of 2015 rose by 89 % (459 975)
compared to the previous quarter (Q2 2015: 242 845). This is the highest quarterly total since
data collection started in 2008. In comparison with the number of applicants registered in the
third quarter of 2014 and of 2013 the increase is even larger: +139 % and +262 %, respectively.
As in previous years, a rise in the third quarter has been preceded by a rise in the second
quarter (and followed by a drop in the fourth), but in 2015 the increase was much larger than
in previous years (Figure 1).
Figure 1: Total and first-time asylum applicants9 in the EU+ since January 2008
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
In comparing the monthly trend for the past three years (Figure 2), the inflow of applicants
was substantially higher in the first three quarters of 2015 than in the same period of 2013
and 2014. The year started with an increase followed by a drop in applicants in February and
March, mostly linked to flows of Kosovar applicants. From April, the numbers increased, more
rapidly than in 2013 and 2014, and this evolution strengthened to a steep rise in the third
quarter. In June, close to 100 000 persons lodged an application for international protection
in the EU+, and in September this number rose to more than 175 000.
Figure 2: Total asylum applicants in the EU+ since January 2013 (monthly trend) Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
9 Total applicants: all persons having submitted an application for international protection as defined in Article 2 (h) of Qualification Directive or having been included in such application as a family member. First-time applicants for international protection are those who lodged an application for the first time in a given Member State. When data for first-time applicants are not available on Eurostat, total applicants are considered first-time applicants.
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 6
Figure 3: Main citizenships/groups of citizenship10 of asylum applicants, Q3 2014 – Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
Figure 3 shows the evolution of the composition of the five largest groups of applicants
registered in the EU+. Q3 of 2015 was the fourth consecutive quarter that the composition of
the top 3 nationalities (or groups) did not change. Following the significant drop in the number
of Western Balkan (WB) applicants (-42 %) in Q2, which was linked to administrative measures
taken in some EU+ countries of destination, in Q3 the number of WB applicants rose by 10 %.
This latest increase, however, was small in relation to increases in the other top five
nationalities. Similar to Q1 2015, Pakistan replaced Eritrea in the top five.
The number of Syrian asylum applications tripled compared to Q2 2015. Syria was the top
main nationality of applicants in Q3 and at more than 148 000, applications by Syrian nationals
comprised one-third of all applications in the EU+. Compared to the Q3 of 2014, there were
three times more Syrian applications registered.
Figure 3b: Main citizenships/group of citizenships of asylum applicants in Q3 2015, Total & Repeated Applicants Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
10 The indicator on applicants for international protection is disaggregated by citizenship, including “Stateless” as a separate category. In this report citizenship and nationality are used interchangeably.
Syria34%
Afghanistan14%Western Balkans
12%
OTHERS11%
Iraq11%
Pakistan5%
Eritrea4%
Nigeria3%
Bangladesh2%
Somalia2%
Russia2%
Total Applicants: 461 285
Syria11%
Afghanistan6%
Western Balkans
44%
OTHERS18%
Iraq5%
Pakistan3%
Eritrea2%
Nigeria2%
Bangladesh1%
Somalia2%
Russia6%
Repeated Applicants:
17 880
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 7
In Q3 2015, 75 % of Syrian applications were lodged in Hungary, Germany and Sweden. Syrian
applications doubled in Germany, Hungary received six times the number of applications of
Q2, and Sweden four and a half times. Given the high share of withdrawn applications in
Hungary, Syrians applying for asylum in the other destination countries may previously have
made a claim in Hungary.
For the second consecutive quarter, applications by Afghan citizens more than doubled in
Q3 2015 to over 60 000 applications. This is almost six times the number of Afghan applicants
reported quarterly in 2014. As in Q2 2015, Hungary was the main country of registration in Q3
with almost half of all Afghan applications in the EU+. One-third of applications were lodged
in Sweden, Germany and Austria with Sweden recording a significant relative increase.
The number of applications in the EU+ from Western Balkans nationals was 50 635, a 10 %
increase compared to Q2 2015 and double the number recorded in Q3 of 2014. The influx of
applicants from Albania again doubled compared to Q2 2015 and increased seven-fold
compared to Q3 2014, reaching a total of almost 28 000 applications. Albanians represented
55 % of all Western Balkan applicants in Q3, compared to 41 % in Q2. The number of Kosovar
nationals continued to fall, as in Q2, and in Q3 represented just 11 % of all Western Balkan
applicants. Following high levels in Q1, the number of Kosovar applications fell sharply in Q2
and in that quarter EU+ countries recorded 40 430 less applications than in the first quarter
of 2015 (78 % decrease). Applications from nationals of the other Western Balkan countries
displayed different patterns. Applications from the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
increased by one-third while Montenegrin applications decreased by 17 %. Applicants from
Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia were relatively unchanged with about 2 410 and 7 925
applications registered, respectively. Similar to Q2 2015, most WB nationals applied for
asylum in Germany (82 %).
A total of 47 485 asylum applications by Iraqi nationals were reported in EU+ countries during
Q3 2015. This represented about 10 % of the total for the quarter. With the threefold increase
compared to the second quarter, Iraq was again fourth in the ranking of the top main
nationalities of applicants. Whereas in Q2 the main countries of destination for Iraqi
applicants were Germany, Austria and Hungary, in Q3, Finland was the main destination with
one quarter of all Iraqi applicants, totalling 11 610 applications. Other destination countries
each receiving 10 % or more the EU+ total of applications from Iraqi nationals included
Germany, Belgium, Hungary, Austria and Sweden.
The number of applications from Pakistani nationals surpassed that of Eritreans and in Q3
Pakistan entered the top five main nationalities for asylum applications in the EU+ (as in Q1
2015). The number more than doubled compared to Q2, reaching a total of 21 905
applications. Most of the increase was in Hungary, which registered almost 12 000 Pakistani
applications in Q3. Other main destination countries for Pakistani applicants include Italy,
Germany, Austria and the United Kingdom.
Despite Eritrea no longer being among the top five citizenships, applications by Eritreans
continued to rise (33 %), the highest relative increase in applications, about three and a half
times the level of the first quarter of 2015, in line with the pattern observed in 2014.
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 8
Some other nationalities also recorded large relative increases compared to the previous
quarter (Figure 4). The number of Bangladeshi asylum applicants more than doubled, with
large increases in applications registered in Hungary and Italy (about +3 000 each).
Figure 4: Main countries of origin of asylum applicants in the EU+, percentage change from Q2 2015 to Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of: 18 January 2016
Profile of applicants for international protection in Europe The charts in Figure 5 show the profile (gender and age breakdown) of the top five
nationalities of asylum applicants in Q3 2015. Among the main features were:
The Syrian flow to the EU+ remained comprised largely of young single men, but also
a significant number of families; it is likely that the majority of those travelling alone
subsequently seek to be joined by their families via family reunification procedures
immediately after their asylum application has resulted in a positive outcome.
More than 90 % of all Afghan asylum applicants were younger than 34 years and 44 %
of the total group were minors. According to data from the EASO Early warning and
Preparedness System (EPS), many of these minors were unaccompanied. The number
of Afghan minors has increased by 9 % compared to Q2 2015.
The vast majority of asylum applicants from Iraq were young adult men, aged 18-34
years, fleeing the tense situation in their country of origin. The flow of asylum seekers
from Pakistan was comprised almost entirely of adult men (94 %).
Albanian applicants were largely comprised of families arriving with children (0-13);
this is typical of applicants coming from Western Balkans countries which was
highlighted in EASO’s WB report on comparative analysis of trends, push-pull factors
and responses11;
11 EASO, Asylum applicants from the Western Balkans: Comparative analysis of trends, push-pull factors and responses – Update, May 2015.
212 % 205 %
156 %
137 %
113 %
76 %
50 %36 %
7 % 5 %0%
50%
100%
150%
200%
250%
Syri
a
Ira
q
Ban
glad
esh
Paki
stan
Afg
hani
stan
Nig
eri
a
Alb
an
ia
Erit
rea
Som
alia
Serb
ia
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 9
Figure 5: The age distribution of applicants from top five countries of origin, by gender and age, Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of: 18 January 2016
Country of destination The chart in Figure 6 shows the changes in absolute numbers of asylum applicants in EU+
countries in Q3 2015 compared to Q2. An overall increase in asylum applications, to a varying
extent, has been reported in all but six EU+ countries. In terms of absolute numbers, Germany
and Hungary were the main countries of destination, together receiving 50 % of all applicants
registered in the EU+ in Q3. The highest relative increase compared to Q2 was reported by
Finland (+835 %; +13 560). Registrations of applications in Germany and Sweden increased by
more than 61 275 in absolute numbers (+35 % and +177 % respectively). Many countries
registered significantly12 more applicants, including Austria (+57 %; +10 250), Belgium
(+142 %; +9 410), Denmark (+119 %; +3 015), France (+17 %; +2 690), Hungary (+229 %;
+75 935), Italy (+90 %; +13 525), the Netherlands (+127 %; +8 550), Norway (+194 %; +5 725),
Switzerland (+67 %; +4 955) and the United Kingdom (+59 %; +4 455).
However, no significant decrease compared to the second quarter of 2015 was registered in
any of the reporting countries.
12 An increase of at least 2 000 compared to Q2 2015
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 10
Figure 6: Total asylum applicants in European destination countries in Q2 and Q3 of 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 11
Section 2: Trends in decisions at first instance
First-instance decisions on international protection issued in the EU+ are displayed in Map 1
for the top 25 countries of origin of applicants during the third quarter of 2015. The main
citizenships can be clustered into two groups: those countries from which applicants were
mostly granted some type of protection (the two types of EU-regulated international
protection statuses, refugee and subsidiary protection, plus national humanitarian protection)
for which the corresponding pie chart is more green (Syria, Eritrea and Iraq); and those from
which applicants were mostly rejected, characterised by a more purple pie chart (Western
Balkans, Pakistan, Nigeria, Bangladesh, the Russian Federation and Ukraine).
Map 1: Main citizenships of applicants, first instance decisions and positive decisions issued in the EU+ during Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016; Note: the groups “Stateless” and “Unknown” citizenships, which ranked, respectively, 16th and 19th in the EU+, are not plotted in the map
Number of decisions During the third quarter of 2015, 142 070 first-instance decisions on international protection
were issued in the EU+, an increase of 14 % compared to the second quarter. The number of
first-instance decisions issued remained well above 100 000 for the fourth consecutive
quarter, reflecting the efforts of EU+ countries to process the high number of applicants for
international protection registered during the period. This was an increase of 54 % compared
to the third quarter of 2014, when 92 460 decisions were issued.
The majority of first-instance decisions issued in the third quarter of 2015 were reported by
Germany (54 270, 38 % of the total), France (19 735, 14 %) and Italy (19 645, 14 %). These
countries together accounted for 66 % of all first-instance decisions issued in the EU+. A
significant number of decisions were also issued by Sweden (11 405, 8 %), the United Kingdom
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 12
(8 700, 6 % of the total), Switzerland (5 025, 4 %), the Netherlands (4 530, 3 %) and Belgium
(4 425, 3 %).
In comparison with Q2 2015, the sharpest increases in the number of first-instance decisions
were reported by Cyprus (+81 %), the Netherlands (+48 %) and Italy (+43 %). In Cyprus, there
was a doubling in the number of decisions on Syrian applications, while for the Netherlands
the rise was due to more decisions issued to both Syrian and, in particular, Eritrean applicants.
In Italy, the rise resulted from an increase in decisions issued to a range of applicants, mostly
those from Sub-Saharan African countries (Nigeria, the Gambia, Mali and Senegal). In Figure 7
the bar charts indicate the number of decisions issued by EU+ countries at first instance (in
blue), the recognition rates13 (in per cent) and the type of protection granted.
Figure 7: First-instance decisions and type of decisions issued in the EU+, Q3 2015
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
As shown in Figure 7, the recognition rate at first instance can vary significantly from one EU+ country to another. While these variations can arise from diverse factors, often they are a consequence of the following:
structural differences in the caseloads (including countries/regions of origin of asylum applicants and their individual profiles) upon which decisions are issued;
different approaches, interpretations and policies adopted across EU+ countries;
13 The recognition rate at first instance is defined here as the ratio between the number of positive first instance decisions issued (refugee status, subsidiary protection status and humanitarian protection (authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons under national law concerning international protection)) as a proportion of the number of all first instance decisions issued (positive decisions and rejections) in the reference period under review.
54 270 Germany
19 735 France
19 645 Italy
11 405 Sweden
8 700 United Kingdom
5 025 Switzerland
4 530 Netherlands
4 425 Belgium
2 525 Denmark
2 500 Greece
2 175 Norway
2 000 Bulgaria
970 Poland
820 Spain
720 Finland
705 Cyprus
530 Hungary
370 Malta
315 Romania
300 Czech Republic
235 Ireland
150 Portugal
150 Luxembourg
75 Croatia
75 Latvia
50 Estonia
35 Lithuania
25 Slovakia
15 Slovenia
: Austria
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Refugee Status Subsidiary Protection Humanitarian Protection
010 00020 00030 00040 00050 000
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 13
the use of various forms of protection that exist under national law and which are reported as humanitarian protection.14
Recognition Rate In the third quarter of 2015, 49 % of all first-instance decisions issued at EU+ level resulted in
a positive outcome, matching the share recorded during the second quarter of 2015 and for
all quarters of 201415.
Figure 8: Type of decisions issued in the EU+, Q3 2015
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
This aggregate EU+ level recognition rate, however, varied widely among EU+ countries. In 14
countries, more than half of the decisions issued at first instance during the third quarter of
2015 were positive. This was the case for Bulgaria (92 % of 2 000 decisions); Malta (86 % of
370); Cyprus (82 % of 705); Sweden (80 % of 11 405); Denmark (75 % of 2 525); Norway (72 %
of 2 175); the Netherlands (71 % of 4 530); Slovenia (67 % of 15); Switzerland (64 % of 5 025);
Portugal (63 % of 150); Slovakia (60 % of 25); Estonia (60 % of 50); Finland (56 % of 725);
Belgium (54 % of 4 425) and Germany (50 % of 54 270).
The charts in Figure 9 show the evolution over two years from Q3 2013 to Q3 2015 of the type
of decisions issued at first instance for the top five (single) countries of origin of applicants
registered in EU+ countries. Decisions include positive decisions (refugee status, subsidiary
protection and humanitarian protection) or rejections.
14 Humanitarian protection is not harmonised at EU level and is reported only by 18 of the EU+ states (Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Norway and Switzerland). 15 See footnote 6.
Refugee status34%
Subsidiary protection10%
Humanitarian protection5%
Rejected51%
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 14
Figure 9: Evolution of first-instance decisions issued since Q3 2013 for the top five countries of origin of applicants; Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
In the third quarter of 2015, the recognition rate at first instance reported for Syrians was
98 %16, two percentage points higher than the rate in the second quarter of 2015, while the
overall number of decisions issued decreased by 27 %. Refugee status accounted for 74 % of
the first-instance decisions issued to Syrian applicants in EU+ countries, 2 % higher than the
proportion of refugee status granted in Q2 2015. Germany issued the highest number of
decisions to Syrian applicants (18 130, +35 % compared to Q2 2015) and in 99 % of these cases
granted refugee status.
The recognition rate for Albanian applicants decreased from 4 % to a low of only 1 %.
Simultaneously, the total number of decisions tripled, mostly reflecting an increase of
decisions in Germany (+314 %). As in the second quarter, Germany prioritised decisions on
Albanian cases.
The recognition rate for Afghan applicants fell two percentage points compared to the
previous quarter to 69 % at EU+ level. However, the total number of decisions increased by
6 %, the first rise since Q1 2014. The distribution by type of protection granted to Afghans
changed only slightly over the period since Q4 2014 (illustrated in the Figure 9) with a
moderate increase in the number of decisions granting subsidiary protection.
16 There can be a number of reasons for the (small) share of negative decisions reported for Syrian applicants including, inter alia, persons claiming to be Syrians who are subsequently found not to be may be rejected while still being reported as Syrians; applicants who absconded during the asylum procedure may be issued a negative decision; finally, certain applicants may be excluded from receiving refugee status or subsidiary protection in line with Articles 12 and 17 of the Qualification Directive.
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 15
The total number of decisions on Pakistani applicants increased by 9 % compared to Q2 2015
while the recognition rate decreased two percentage points to 25%. This is the second-lowest
recognition rate among the top five nationalities, after Albanians. Over the past two years the
EU+ recognition rate for Pakistani applicants has fluctuated between 20 and 30 %, ranging
from 19 % in Q3 2013 up to 30 % in Q3 2014. Also over this period, the share of first-instance
decisions granting refugee status has decreased whereas increased shares of granting both
subsidiary and humanitarian protection were reported.
The recognition rate for Iraqis remained stable throughout the first three quarters of 2015 at
87 %, after rising significantly compared to two years ago (51 % in Q3 2013). The higher
recognition rates (more decisions granting of refugee status) have reflected the deterioration
in the security situation in several Iraqi provinces that started in 2014.
Type of protection granted In EU+ countries, decisions granting refugee status made up 32 % of all first-instance decisions
issued during Q3 of 2015 (down two percentage points), while decisions granting subsidiary
protection and humanitarian protection comprised 10 % (up one percentage point) and 5 %
(no change), respectively.
Refugee status
In terms of the relative proportions of the various types of protection granted, Germany
(96 %), Greece (94 %), the United Kingdom (88 %), Norway (90 %) and Belgium (86 %) granted
refugee status in the largest share of their positive decisions. Table 1 below shows the
countries of origin of asylum applicants who were most often granted refugee status in these
five EU+ countries during the third quarter of 2015.
Table 1: First instance positive decisions issued refugee status, Q3 2015, by citizenship of applicants
(only countries that issued more than 300 decisions in Q3 2015)
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
EU+ country
Citizenship
Positive
decisions
Refugee
Status
Ratio of Refugee
Status in Positive
Decisions
Germany 27 140 26 170 96%Syria 18 170 18 130 100%Iraq 3 400 3 330 98%Eritrea 1 700 1 525 90%Other 3 870 3 185 82%
Greece 1 200 1 125 94%Syria 935 935 100%Afghanistan 70 40 57%Stateless 20 20 100%Other 175 130 74%
United Kingdom 3 220 2 830 88%Sudan 690 685 99%Syria 605 590 98%Iran 400 390 98%Other 1 525 1 165 76%
Norway 1 570 1 415 90%Eritrea 625 620 99%Syria 335 330 99%Stateless 140 125 89%Other 470 340 72%
Belgium 2 380 2 055 86%Syria 730 705 97%Unknown 185 185 100%Guinea 170 170 100%Other 1 295 995 77%
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 16
Subsidiary protection
The highest proportions of subsidiary protection decisions, as a share of all positive decisions
issued during the third quarter of 2015, were registered in Cyprus (92 %), Spain (82 %), Malta
(75 %), Hungary (68 %), and Sweden (60 %). Table 2 below shows the principal citizenships of
asylum applicants mainly granted subsidiary protection status in these five EU+ countries.
Table 2: First instance positive decisions issued and subsidiary protection, Q3 2015, by citizenship of
applicants (only countries that issued more than 300 decisions in Q3 2015)
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
Humanitarian protection17
Of the 18 EU+ countries for which this type of protection is reported, Italy (55 %), Switzerland
(38 %) and Poland (11 %) were the main countries granting humanitarian protection in
positive decisions issued in the third quarter of 2015.
Table 3: First instance positive decisions issued and humanitarian protection, Q3 2015, by citizenship
of applicants (only countries that issued more than 300 decisions in Q3 2015)
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
17 Humanitarian protection is not harmonised at EU level and is reported by only 18 of the EU+ countries (Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Finland, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Norway and Switzerland).
EU+ country
Citizenship
Positive
decisions
Subsidiary
protection
Ratio of Subsidiary
Protection in
Positive Decisions
Cyprus 575 530 92%Syria 525 520 99%Stateless 25 0 0%Iraq 15 0 0%
Other 10 10 100%
Spain 220 180 82%Syria 130 125 96%Somalia 45 40 89%Palestine 5 5 100%Other 90 55 61%
Malta 320 240 75%Libya 215 165 77%Syria 50 50 100%Ukraine 25 0 0%Other 30 25 83%
Hungary 110 75 68%Syria 30 20 67%Somalia 20 15 75%Afghanistan 20 15 75%Other 40 25 63%
Sweden 9 120 5 455 60%Syria 5815 5210 90%Eritrea 1575 35 2%Stateless 855 105 12%Other 875 105 12%
EU+ country
Citizenship
Positive
decisions
Humanitarian
protection
Ratio of Humanitarian
Protection in Positive
Decisions
Italy 7 850 4 325 55%Gambia 895 770 86%Nigeria 965 630 65%Mali 710 465 65%
Other 5 280 2 460 47%
Switzerland 3 235 1 240 38%Syria 890 530 60%Afghanistan 165 115 70%Eritrea 1 070 110 10%
Other 1 110 485 44%
Poland 3 220 365 11%Afghanistan 165 60 36%Albania 55 55 100%Eritrea 385 50 13%Other 3 055 305 10%
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 17
Stock of pending cases
The stock of pending cases18 at the end of September 2015 totalled 842 875, a significant 37 %
rise with 229 660 more cases pending than at the end of June 2015. The stock, which has risen
more or less consecutively for each quarter from Q2 of 2012, once again set a new high (since
the beginning of EU-level data collection in 2008).
Figure 10: Stock of pending cases at the end of each quarter since 2008
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 201619
Germany (366 190), Hungary (107 420) and Sweden (85 760) were the EU+ countries with the
highest stock of pending cases at the end of September 2015.
The highest relative increases in pending cases, compared to Q2 2015, were registered in
Finland (+535 %) and in Hungary (+340 %). The largest absolute increases were reported by
Hungary (+82 990), Germany (+60 180) and Sweden (+29 755). The increase in Finland
followed an increase in pending cases of Iraqi applicants, which rose from 765 in Q2 to 12 245
in Q3. Hungary reported a significant increase in pending cases of applicants from Syria,
Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran, as well as those of unknown citizenship. The
increase resulted from a large number of applications (109 175) combined with a low number
of first-instance decisions made (530) during the quarter. In Germany, there was a strong rise
in the number of pending cases of Syrian, Albanian and Afghan nationals, respectively
increasing by 65 %, 45 % and 30 %. This rise stems from the influx of asylum applicants of
these nationalities, which was not offset by a higher number of first-instance decisions taken
during the quarter for these nationalities.
18 The stock of pending cases indicator gives a snapshot of the number of persons who lodged an application for international protection which is still under consideration by the responsible national authority at the end of the reference period. 19 At the time of writing, all pending cases data since the beginning of 2014 in Austria were not available. Also, no data have been available for pending cases for an extended period from Cyprus from May 2011- 2014 (excluding December 2012) and the Netherlands for the entire period 2012-2014.
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 18
Among the other EU+ countries, Norway (+146 %), the Netherlands (+129 %), Belgium (+85 %)
Denmark (+56 %), Switzerland (+40 %) and Poland (+23 %) registered a significant20 increase
in their stock of pending cases at the end of September compared to end of June 2015. In
almost all of these countries, there was a higher influx of applicants for international
protection along with similar or lower number of decisions issued. In contrast, France, Greece
and Cyprus had a lower stock of pending cases at the end of September compared to the end
of June, despite a higher influx of applicants.
Figure 11: Stock of pending cases as of 30 September 2015 and percentage change in pending cases
from 30 June 2014 to 30 September 2015 by reporting EU+ country
Source: Eurostat data as of: 18 January 201621
Figure 12: Stock of pending cases as of 30 September 2015 and percentage change in pending cases from 30 June 2015 to 30 September 2015 by main countries of origin Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
20 Significant in this case means more than 15% and 250 cases. 21 Data on the stock of pending cases not available for Austria.
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 19
The bar chart in Figure 12 shows the percentage changes in the stock of pending cases
between Q2 2015 and Q3 2015 for the top 10 citizenships recorded in Q3 2015. With the
exception of applicants from Kosovo (which decreased), the number of pending cases for
applicants of the nine other main nationalities rose compared to the end of June.
With almost 165 000 Syrian applicants awaiting a decision at the end of June, the highest
number of pending cases for the sixth consecutive quarter was for Syrian applications,
following a 129 % rise compared to the end of June. The stock of Afghan applicants awaiting
a decision represented the second-largest group in the EU+ at the end of September with
more than 85 000 pending cases, moving up from third position in the second quarter. For
both nationalities, the rise in pending stock followed an increase in applications which
exceeded the number of first-instance decisions. The stock of pending cases of Iraqi applicants
had the largest relative increase, moving it from seventh largest citizenship in Q2 to third
largest in Q3. This followed a three-fold increase in asylum applications by Iraqi nationals,
while the number of decisions issued in the quarter did not change much from Q2 2015.
The stock of Kosovar pending cases at EU+ level decreased further by 8 % in the third quarter
of 2015 to 29 025 cases. As a result, Kosovo moved down to seventh position in the ranking
of citizenships with the most pending cases.
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 20
Section 3: Key trends in focus
Figure 13: Main citizenships of asylum applicants in the EU+, Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of: 18 January 2016
Syria For the second consecutive quarter, Syria was the main citizenship of asylum applicants in EU+
countries. EU+ countries registered 148 460 applications from Syrians, three times the
number in Q2 2015 and in Q3 2014. The number of Syrian applicants rose each month,
culminating in more than 61 000 applications in September.
In Syria, in almost all governorates, the security situation deteriorated over the summer
months and fighting intensified.22 At the same time, the need for humanitarian aid to Syrians
inside of Syria has been greater than the availability.23 As a result, more and more Syrians left
their country and moved towards neighbouring countries and Europe. The total number of
Syrian refugees registered outside the EU was estimated in January 2016 at 4 597 436.24 Most
of these refugees are registered in Turkey and Lebanon but also in Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and
other north-African countries. During the third quarter, 61 187 Syrians were newly registered,
far less than the number of Syrians who applied for international protection during the same
period in EU+ countries. Based on these figures, compared to previous quarters, the
proportion of those who have fled Syria (and have been registered in neighbouring countries)
and have decided to come to the EU+ has increased. Countries in the region, faced with large
numbers of refugees, have taken measures to stem the inflow, such as border control
22 UNHCR, Worsening conditions inside Syria and the region fuel despair, driving thousands towards Europe, UNHCR.org of 8
September 2015, accessed on 27 January 2016. 23 Syria conflict will displace another million people, says UN official, The Guardian of 12 September 2015, accessed on 27
January 2016. 24 UNHCR, Syria Regional Refugee Response, data.unhcr.org of 19 January 2016, accessed 27 January 2016.
Total
Syria
WB
Iraq
Pakistan
Eritrea
Nigeria
Somalia
Stateless
Unknown
Russia
Sudan
Senegal
Mali
Ghana
Ethiopia
Algeria
Others
32%
13%
11%
10%
5%
4%
3%
2%
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
1%
0%
0%
0%
0%
9%
Syria
Afghanistan
WB
Iraq
Pakistan
Eritrea
Nigeria
Bangladesh
Somalia
Stateless
Unknown
Russia
Sudan
The Gambia
Senegal
Mali
Ghana
Ethiopia
Côte d'Ivoire
Algeria
Others
0 20 000 40 000 60 000 80 000 100 000 120 000 140 000 160 000
Repeated applications
First-time applications
Series3XX% - Share of EU+ total for Q3 2015
461 285 Asylum applications
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 21
measures and additional requirements for refugees to extend their stay,25 which may have
contributed to an increase in the number of Syrian asylum-seekers moving towards the EU+.
In addition, policy changes in the EU+ have also influenced the increase in Syrian applicants.
In August, Germany suspended some provisions of the Dublin Regulation for Syrian asylum
seekers. As a result, Germany stopped sending Syrian applicants back to the first country of
entry into the EU, mostly Greece.26
Throughout the third quarter, Syrian nationals arrived irregularly to the EU+ via the Eastern
Mediterranean route, crossing from Turkey towards the Greek Islands (Lesvos, Chios, Samos
and Kos). The increase in arrivals of Syrian nationals along this route was substantial: more
than 224 000 Syrian nationals were detected illegally crossing the external sea borders, and
another 3 000 crossing land borders.27 This increase in arrivals was reflected in the increase in
asylum applications in Hungary and, to a lesser extent, Austria.
Map 2: Distribution of Syrian asylum applicants in the EU+, Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
As shown in map 2, the influx of Syrian applicants in Q3 2015 was concentrated in Hungary
(37 % of the total EU+ applications), followed by Germany (25 %), Sweden (13 %) and Austria
(8 %). These four EU+ countries accounted for 81 % of the total number of Syrian applicants
25 UNHCR, International protection considerations with regard to people fleeing the Syrian Arab Republic : Update IV,
November 2015, accessed 27 January 2016. 26 Germany suspends Dublin agreement for Syrian refugees, Euractiv 26 August 2015, accessed 21 January 2016. 27 Frontex, FRAN Quarterly: Quarter 3 – July-September 2015, Warsaw, January 2015
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 22
registered in Q3 2015. The influx of applicants followed a migration route via the Western
Balkans region and onward to main destination countries in the northern part of the EU+.
As Figure 17 shows, the number of Syrian applicants increased in the third quarter of 2015 for
almost all main destination countries compared to Q2 2015. These increases were
exponential: the highest relative increase was registered for Norway with an increase of
921 %, and the highest absolute increase was reported by Hungary with almost + 45 000
applications more than in Q2 2015. In some countries the numbers decreased slightly, such as
Bulgaria (-300), Spain (-500), Latvia (-100) and Romania (-100). In Germany, the number of
applications by Syrians more than doubled and the largest rise was registered in September
with more than 60 % more applications than in August. Syrians were in the top three
citizenships of applicants of 20 EU+ countries, similar to the previous three quarters.
Figure 17: Distribution of Syrian asylum applicants in the EU+, Q2 2015 and Q3 2015
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
Figure 18: First-instance decisions and type of decisions issued in Q3 2015 to Syrian applicants (only
countries that issued more than 100 decisions in Q3 2015)
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
0
10 000
20 000
30 000
40 000
50 000
60 000
Hu
nga
ry
Ge
rma
ny
Swe
de
n
Au
stri
a
Ne
the
rla
nd
s
Be
lgiu
m
No
rwa
y
De
nm
ark
Bu
lga
ria
Swit
zerl
and
Fran
ce
Spai
n
Gre
ece
Un
ite
d K
ingd
om
Fin
lan
d
Cyp
rus
Luxe
mb
ou
rg
Ital
y
Po
lan
d
Mal
ta
Ro
man
ia
Ire
lan
d
Cze
ch R
ep
ub
lic
Cro
atia
2015Q2 2015Q3
18 415 Germany
5 880 Sweden
1 775 Bulgaria
1 350 Netherlands
1 065 Denmark
940 Greece
930 Switzerland
930 France
755 Belgium
685 United Kingdom
525 Cyprus
360 Norway
170 Poland
150 Italy
140 Spain
115 Romania
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Refugee Status Subsidiary Protection
Humanitarian Protection
05 00010 00015 00020 000
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 23
As shown in Figure 18, the type of positive decisions granted to Syrians in Q3 2015 varied
substantially among the main receiving EU+ countries. While Germany, Bulgaria, Denmark,
Greece, Switzerland, France, Belgium, Norway, Poland and Italy predominantly granted
Syrians refugee status, Sweden, the Netherlands, Cyprus, Spain and Romania more often
granted subsidiary protection status.
In Q3 2015, Switzerland was the main receiving EU+ country with the highest share of
humanitarian protection granted to Syrians, with more than half of all decisions issued at first
instance on Syrian cases granting to humanitarian protection.
At the end of September 2015, the stock of pending cases in the EU+ countries for Syrian
applicants was of 164 720 persons, representing the largest single citizenship caseload in the
EU+ countries and more than twice as high as at the end of the second quarter of 2015. In 8
out of 30 EU+ countries the stock of pending cases more than doubled. The increase was most
apparent for Hungary, the first EU+ country along the Western Balkan route where Syrian
nationals lodged their applications. A nine-fold increase of the pending stock was reported in
Q3 2015, comprised of 45 170 more pending cases than in the previous quarter. Large
increases in the stock were registered for Germany and Sweden with respectively 20 160 and
12 025 more cases pending than in the previous quarter. In percentage terms, substantial
growth of the pending stock was seen also in Norway, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Finland
and Belgium. Italy was the country with the largest relative decrease in its already low number
of cases awaiting a first-instance decision, following the shift of arrivals via the Eastern
Mediterranean rather than the Central Mediterranean route. Despite new highs in the
number of Syrians arriving, Greece reported a low number of applications, similar to Q2 2015
and Greece was able to bring about a slight reduction in the stock of pending cases by 12 %.
Western Balkans In the third quarter of 2015, the number of asylum applicants from the six Western Balkan
countries combined totalled nearly 50 000. The drop in numbers after the quarterly high in
the first quarter of 2015 did not continue later into the second quarter, and in the third,
applications again increased slightly by 10 %. This brings the total number of Western Balkan
applicants close to the high levels recorded at the end of 2014 and double the number of WB
applicants of Q3 2014.
The drop in the second quarter of 2015 was almost entirely due to fewer Kosovar applicants,
which followed the unprecedented influx from Kosovo in the first quarter. The influx fell
rapidly following measures taken by Germany, Austria, and Hungary, such as returns,
informative advertisements in the main countries of origin, and increased border surveillance.
The subsequent rise in WB applicants in Q3 2015 is due to more applications by mostly
Albanian nationals.
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 24
Figure 14: Western Balkan applicants in EU+ countries, quarterly trend since 2013 Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
In Q3 2015, Albanian nationals continued to be the most represented WB nationality, followed
by Serbian and Kosovar applicants. These three countries combined accounted for 82 % of the
WB total. As the chart above shows, in Q3 2015 the number of Albanian applicants continued
an upward trend that started in the last quarter of 2014 and increased by half compared to
the previous quarter, totalling more than 27 000 applications. Unlike Kosovar applicants, who
entered irregularly via Hungary, citizens of Albania, who are beneficiaries of the visa-
liberalisation regime, travelled directly to their final destination country. Germany continued
to receive the main share of Albanian applicants, comprising 83 % of the total number of
Albanians registered by EU+ countries in Q3 2015.
Applications by Kosovar nationals continued to decline, after falling 78% in Q2 2015, with a
more modest but still significant decrease in Q3 2015 of 48 %. With a total of 6 080
applications, the level was comparable to Q3 2014, before the large influx that followed at the
end of 2014 and early 2015.
The very large number of Albanian applicants overshadowed what were otherwise significant
numbers from Serbia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and, to a lesser extent,
Montenegro. The number of applicants from the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
increased by 34 % compared to Q3 2015, setting a new quarterly high since 2008. Germany
constituted the main country of destination.
The number of Serbian applicants remained relatively stable with an increase of 5 % compared
to the previous quarter, slightly lower than in Q3 2014 (-7 %). Again, the overwhelming
majority (90 %) of Serbian nationals applied in Germany. The number of Bosnian applicants
fell for the second consecutive quarter, to approximately the same level recorded by EU+
countries in the second quarter of 2014.
A total of 1 345 applications from citizens of Montenegro were registered in Q3 2015, a 17 %
decrease compared to Q2 2015 but still four times higher than Q3 2014. The number of
applicants from Bosnia and Herzegovina remained stable at 2 420 (the quarterly totals have
fluctuated around this number for two years). Applicants from these two nationalities, both
0
10 000
20 000
30 000
40 000
50 000
60 000
70 000
80 000
90 000
Q12013
Q2 Q3 Q4 Q12014
Q2 Q3 Q4 Q12015
Q2 Q3
Montenegro FYROM Kosovo Bosnia and Herzegovina Serbia Albania
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 25
of which are beneficiaries of the EU visa-liberalisation regime, mostly lodged their asylum
claims in Germany.
Figure 15: Distribution of Western Balkan asylum applicants in the EU+, Q2 2015 and Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
Figure 15 shows the change in asylum applicants in the third quarter of 2015 compared to the
second quarter: the number of Western Balkan applicants increased only in 3 of the 19
countries that reported applications in the second quarter. Germany registered 81 % of the
total number of Western Balkan applicants in the EU+. The number of applications in Germany
grew by 10 % compared to Q2 2015.
In Q3 2015, the overall EU+ recognition rate granted to Western Balkan applicants was 2 %.
While the majority of the EU+ countries issued mostly negative decisions to Western Balkan
applicants, Italy and Switzerland had recognition rates above 20 %. The United Kingdom’s
recognition rate dropped to 15 % of all first-instance decisions.
Figure 16: First-instance decisions and type of decisions issued in the EU+ for Western Balkan
applicants; only the 10 countries that issued most decisions in Q3 2015 are displayed
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
As shown in Figure 16, Germany issued by far the most decisions at first instance on Western
Balkan cases (24 725), of which a very small number (90) were positive. The increase was due
0
5 000
10 000
15 000
20 000
25 000
30 000
35 000
40 000
45 000
Ge
rma
ny
Fran
ce
Swe
de
n
Ne
the
rla
nd
s
Fin
lan
d
Be
lgiu
m
Hu
nga
ry
Un
ite
d K
ingd
om
Swit
zerl
and
Au
stri
a
Gre
ece
Ital
y
No
rwa
y
Luxe
mb
ou
rg
De
nm
ark
Ire
lan
d
Slo
ven
ia
Bu
lga
ria
Ro
man
ia
2015Q2 2015Q3
24 725 Germany
2 190 France
985 Sweden
500 Belgium
380 United Kingdom
315 Netherlands
260 Switzerland
200 Finland
195 Norway
165 Greece
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Refugee Status Subsidiary Protection
Humanitarian Protection
010 00020 00030 000
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 26
to measures implemented by Germany to prioritise decision-making on Western Balkan cases.
In Italy, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, most of the positive first-instance decisions
issued to Western Balkan applicants resulted in humanitarian protection.
At the end of June 2015, 126 520 applicants from the Western Balkan countries were awaiting
a decision on their cases in the EU+, an increase of 13 % compared to the end of June 2015,
despite the increase in the number of decisions taken.
Afghanistan
In Q3 2015, Afghan applicants for international protection represented the second-largest
single citizenship of applicants in EU+ countries. After doubling in the second quarter, the
number of Afghan applicants doubled again in the third quarter to 61 905, a new quarterly
high. Compared to Q3 2014, this constituted a five-fold rise with 98 % of these applications
lodged by first-time applicants (i.e. persons who have never applied before in the reporting
EU+ country), similar to Q2 2015.
Map 3: Distribution of Afghan asylum applicants in the EU+, Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
Hungary received the largest number of Afghan applications by far (almost 28 000, or 46 % of
the total), followed by Sweden, Germany and Austria, with 13 %, 12 % and 12 %, respectively.
Applicants from the vast majority of other nationalities who applied in Hungary rapidly
absconded and applied again in other EU+ countries. According to information available from
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 27
Frontex28, Afghan nationals have been increasingly detected crossing the border from Turkey
to Greece. As the map shows, they generally did not apply for international protection in
Greece, but rather continued their journey to central/northern Europe via the Western Balkan
route. In the third quarter, Sweden became the second-ranked country among the EU+
receiving countries with the number of applications by Afghans rising more than five-fold
compared to the previous quarter, from 1 410 to 7 635.
Figure 19: Distribution of Afghan asylum applicants in EU+, Q2 2015 and Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
The large number of Afghan applicants in EU+ countries in the last nine months confirmed
EASO’s scenario (mentioned in previous EASO Quarterly Reports) of trends toward higher
flows from the second half of 2014. The EASO COI Report on Afghanistan: Security Situation29
provides evidence that the security situation in the country deteriorated throughout 2014:
the progressive withdrawal of the International Security Assistance Force during 2014 has led
to an intensification of the number of security incidents, causing casualties and injuries among
civilians.
Despite the growth in the number of applications lodged, the total number of decisions at first
instance issued to Afghan applicants totalled 4 315 in the third quarter of 2015, representing
only a 10 % increase compared to the second quarter. This is the first increase after one year
of decline in consecutive quarters, but the Q3 2015 total still remains the second lowest
number of decisions issued to Afghans in the last five years. This may suggest some difficulties
in the processing of Afghan cases in EU+ countries given the complexity of the current
situation in this country of origin.
The overall EU+ recognition rate for Afghan applicants was 69 % in Q3 2015. This represents
a two-percentage-point decrease compared to Q2 2015. There was, however, considerable
disparity in the recognition rates at first instance across EU+ countries that issued more than
100 decisions in the quarter, which ranged between 19 % and 97 %. The type of protection
28 Frontex, FRAN Quarterly: Quarter 3 – July-September 2015, Warsaw, January 2015 29 EASO, COI Security Update for Afghanistan, September 2015.
0
5 000
10 000
15 000
20 000
25 000
30 000
Hu
nga
ry
Swe
de
n
Ge
rma
ny
Au
stri
a
Bu
lga
ria
Be
lgiu
m
No
rwa
y
Swit
zerl
and
Ital
y
Un
ite
d K
ingd
om
Fin
lan
d
Gre
ece
Fran
ce
Ne
the
rla
nd
s
De
nm
ark
Ire
lan
d
Ro
man
ia
Latv
ia
Luxe
mb
ou
rg
Slo
vaki
a
Esto
nia
Lith
uan
ia
Slo
ven
ia
2015Q2 2015Q3
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 28
granted to Afghans by different EU+ countries also diverged substantially. While Germany and
the United Kingdom mainly granted Afghans refugee status, Norway, France and Italy mainly
granted subsidiary protection status. As for Syrians, in Switzerland most of the first-instance
decisions issued to Afghans led to humanitarian protection. Ten EU+ countries had a
recognition rate higher than the EU+ average (69 %).
Figure 20: First-instance decisions and type of decisions issued in the EU+ on Afghans; only countries
that issued more than 100 decisions in Q3 2015 are displayed
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
At the end of September 2015, there were 85 730 pending cases at first instance of Afghan
applicants in the EU+. Compared to the end of March 2015, this constituted a 76 % increase
in the number of pending cases registered, reflecting the increase in application and delays
affecting the processing of the Afghan caseload in some EU+ countries. Most cases were
pending in Germany (34 %) and Hungary (33 %), followed by far by Sweden (12 %). The
increase in pending cases was most significant in Hungary where the stock almost tripled.
Iraq
In Q3 2015, Iraqi applicants for international protection represented the third-largest single
citizenship of applicants in EU+ countries. The number of Iraqi applicants has increased in
consecutive quarters to reach a record level of 47 485 in Q3 2015. This is about 10 times the
quarterly average of Iraqi applications since 2008. Compared to Q2 2015, this is a three-fold
increase and 98 % are first-time applicants.
The increase in the number of Iraqi applicants in the third quarter followed a deterioration in
the security situation in certain regions in Iraq.30 As a result, large numbers of Iraqi were
internally displaced (the IOM estimates the number of internally displaced in Iraq at more
than 3.2 million)31 and more people left the territory of Iraq. Also large numbers of Syrian
refugees arriving in the EU may have average spurred many displaced Iraqis to try and reach
EU+ countries in order to apply for international protection.32 Frontex recorded 17 700 Iraqi
30 Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq – Human Rights Office, Report on the Protection of Civilians in the Armed Conflict in Iraq : 1 May – 31 October 2015, accessed 20 January 2016. 31 Displacement in Iraq exceeds 3.2 million, IOM.int 16 October 2015, accessed 18 January 2015. 32 Why is Finland a top destination for asylum-seekers?, CS Monitor 30 September 2015, accessed 18 January 2015.
990 Italy
795 Germany
515 United Kingdom
325 Belgium
320 Switzerland
320 Sweden
265 France
200 Norway
140 Netherlands
130 Hungary
115 Greece
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Refugee Status Subsidiary Protection
Humanitarian Protection
0 200 400 600 8001 000
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 29
nationals crossing into the EU in Greece via the Eastern Mediterranean route in Q3 2015 but
suggested this may be an under estimation because Iraqis may falsely claim to be Syrian.33
Map 3: Distribution of Iraqi asylum applicants in the EU+, Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
Remarkably, in the third quarter 2015 it was Finland who received most of the asylum
applications by Iraqi nationals: 11 610 or 25 % of all Iraqi applicants in the EU+. Other
destination countries where large numbers of Iraqi nationals lodged their applications
included Germany, Belgium, Hungary, Austria and Sweden. Together all these countries
accounted for 86 % of Iraqi applications in EU+ countries. As the shading on Map 3 illustrates,
Iraqi applicants claimed asylum in Q3 2015 along the route from south-eastern to northern
Europe.
As a consequence of the large influx in Finland, the Finnish Immigration Service temporarily
suspended decision-making on Iraqi asylum claims in September in order to further assess the
33 Frontex, FRAN Quarterly: Quarter 3 – July-September 2015, Warsaw, January 2015
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 30
security situation in Iraq. The new assessment of the security situation in Iraq determined that
applications were to be examined and decided upon on their own merits rather than solely
on the region of origin.34
Figure 19: Distribution of Iraqi asylum applicants in EU+, Q2 2015 and Q3 2015 Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
The number of decisions issued to Iraqi applicants rose but the increase was not in parallel
with the rate of the asylum applications. In Q3 2015, 5 895 first-instance decisions were taken
applications by Iraqi applicants, a 9 % increase compared to Q2 and the highest number of
decisions since 2010.
The recognition rate in the EU+ for Iraqi applicants was 87 % in Q3 2015, similar to Q2.
Compared to one year ago the share of positive decisions issued to Iraqi applicants has clearly
risen: in Q3 2014, the recognition rate was 77 %.
There was, however, considerable disparity in the recognition rates at first instance across
EU+ countries that issued more than 100 decisions in the quarter, which ranged between 17 %
and 99 %. The type of protection granted to Iraqis by different EU+ countries also diverged
substantially. In Germany and France, positive first-instance decisions granted mostly refugee
status, whereas in Italy they granted mostly subsidiary protection, and Switzerland
humanitarian protection. Germany, France and Italy had recognition rates higher than the EU+
average. In Finland the recognition rate fell from 88 % in Q2 2015 to 81 % in Q3 2015.
34 Finnish Immigration Service freezes decision-making on Iraqi and Somali asylum claims, migri.fi 30 September 2015 accessed on 18 January 2016.
0
2 000
4 000
6 000
8 000
10 000
12 000
14 000Fi
nla
nd
Ge
rma
ny
Be
lgiu
m
Hu
nga
ry
Au
stri
a
Swe
de
n
Bu
lga
ria
Fran
ce
Un
ite
d K
ingd
om
Ne
the
rla
nd
s
No
rwa
y
Swit
zerl
and
De
nm
ark
Gre
ece
Ital
y
Luxe
mb
ou
rg
Ro
man
ia
Cyp
rus
Slo
ven
ia
Latv
ia
Po
lan
d
Spai
n
Ire
lan
d
Lith
uan
ia
Cze
ch R
ep
ub
lic
Cro
atia
Esto
nia
2015Q2 2015Q3
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 31
Figure 20: First-instance decisions and type of decisions issued in the EU+ on Iraqi; only countries
that issued more than 100 decisions in Q3 2015 are displayed
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
At the end of September 2015, there were 57 830 cases of Iraqi applicants pending at first
instance in the EU+, more than double the stock at the end of the previous quarter. This clearly
reflects the increased influx of asylum applicants combined with only a slight increase in
decisions. The largest number of Iraqi applicants’ cases awaiting a decision were registered in
Germany (28 %) and Finland (21 %), followed by Belgium (12 %), Sweden and Hungary (each
11 %). The most significant relative increase in the pending stock took place in Finland where
it grew from a mere 765 pending cases in Q2 2015 to 12 245 pending cases in Q3 2015.
3 440 Germany
825 France
320 United Kingdom
320 Belgium
205 Sweden
135 Italy
130 Finland
100 Switzerland
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
Refugee Status Subsidiary Protection
Humanitarian Protection
01 0002 0003 0004 000
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 32
Annex I – Statistical overview
Overview of asylum applicants, withdrawn applications and pending cases registered in the EU+ by main citizenship, Q2 2014 – Q3 2015
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
Note:
1) In case of missing data in the quarter under review, rate of changes are calculated excluding the not reporting countries.
2) Kosovo: this designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244.
last year prev. qtr
Asylum applicants 136 460 191 485 210 720 214 085 242 845 459 975 + 140 + 89
Syria 23 755 42 720 42 555 33 055 47 620 148 460 + 248 + 212 32Afghanistan 7 400 11 035 15 240 14 335 28 995 61 905 + 461 + 114 13Iraq 3 705 7 765 7 275 9 045 15 560 47 485 + 512 + 205 10Albania 4 100 3 820 4 880 8 645 18 385 27 485 + 620 + 49 6.0Pakistan 4 980 5 995 6 165 5 715 9 245 21 905 + 265 + 137 4.8Eritrea 14 310 19 540 8 855 4 300 13 830 18 755 -4. + 36 4.1Nigeria 5 055 6 195 6 270 4 855 6 755 11 950 + 93 + 77 2.6Bangladesh 1 975 3 335 4 525 2 750 3 105 7 935 + 138 + 156 1.7Serbia 4 910 8 545 11 490 10 215 7 570 7 925 - 7 +4. 7 1.7Somalia 4 620 5 030 4 300 4 335 6 445 6 895 + 37 + 7 1.5Other 48 075 49 125 57 885 59 260 55 485 99 275 + 102 + 79 22
Withdrawn applications 12 840 14 280 31 725 28 685 32 880 38 290 + 168 + 16Afghanistan 1 520 1 910 2 955 4 195 7 100 9 730 + 409 + 37 25Syria 1 045 1 495 2 960 1 620 4 560 7 415 + 396 + 63 19Iraq 375 355 1 645 660 2 505 3 035 + 755 + 21 7.9Pakistan 720 700 4 780 1 060 1 730 2 865 + 309 + 66 7.5Russia 1 230 1 360 1 340 1 080 1 340 2 585 + 90 + 93 6.8Albania 370 330 620 505 890 1 820 + 452 + 104 4.8Kosovo 355 1 340 5 005 11 675 5 125 750 - 44 - 85 2.0Serbia 600 665 705 935 1 010 720 + 8 - 29 1.9Bangladesh 245 165 1 555 380 610 715 +333. 3 + 17 1.9Nigeria 395 390 825 350 535 690 + 77 + 29 1.8Other 4 600 4 635 5 000 4 080 3 870 7 965 + 72 + 106 21
Pending cases 387 890 458 905 513 005 549 005 613 215 842 875 + 84 + 37
Syria 33 835 50 685 61 265 62 060 72 030 164 720 + 225 + 129 20
Afghanistan 28 405 29 985 33 910 35 480 48 855 85 730 + 186 + 75 10
Iraq 12 465 16 585 17 720 20 030 24 985 57 830 + 249 + 131 6.9
Eritrea 19 230 33 755 35 820 33 010 39 160 48 635 + 44 + 24 5.8
Albania 11 470 12 125 13 605 18 940 31 895 44 970 + 271 + 41 5.3
Pakistan 31 140 32 735 31 175 30 980 33 600 44 285 + 35 + 32 5.3
Kosovo 7 905 9 425 23 315 38 990 31 600 29 025 + 208 -8. 1 3.4
Nigeria 14 720 17 710 20 170 20 925 22 885 27 475 + 55 + 20 3.3
Serbia 14 950 19 055 23 010 25 585 26 255 27 345 + 44 +4. 2 3.2
Somalia 13 360 14 885 15 775 16 935 19 775 23 035 + 55 + 16 2.7
Other 136 340 144 895 160 940 174 880 182 390 289 825 + 100 + 59 34
2014 2015
Q3Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2
2015Q3
Share
in EU+Sparkline% change1 on
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 33
Overview of first-instance decisions issued in the EU+ by main citizenship, Q2 2014 – Q3 2015
Source: Eurostat data as of 18 January 2016
Note:
1) In case of missing data in the quarter under review, rate of changes are calculated excluding the not reporting countries.
2) Kosovo: this designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244. 3) MK*: the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia.
last year prev. qtr
Total Decisions 87 130 92 460 118 070 129 410 124 820 142 070 + 54 + 14
Refugee Status 20 040 23 630 35 850 43 770 40 690 48 045 + 103 + 18 34
Syria 6 700 8 445 16 020 21 135 19 405 25 420 + 201 + 31 53
Eritrea 2 465 3 330 4 890 5 265 5 330 5 395 + 62 1.2 11
Iraq 775 1 010 2 395 4 415 4 200 4 600 + 355 + 10 10
Stateless 765 880 1 280 1 940 1 425 1 715 + 95 + 20 3.6
Unknown 585 565 965 1 310 1 175 1 500 + 165 + 28 3.1
Sudan 290 455 645 740 945 1 170 157 + 24 2.4
Iran 1 180 1 305 1 255 1 405 1 240 1 125 - 14 - 9.3 2.3
Afghanistan 1 365 1 555 1 375 1 225 1 045 1 085 - 30 + 3.8 2.3
Somalia 735 610 665 545 615 650 + 6.6 + 5.7 1.4
Sri Lanka 475 830 930 675 595 635 - 23 + 6.7 1.3
Other 4 705 4 645 5 430 5 115 4 715 4 750 + 2.3 + 0.7 10
Subsidiary protection 12 700 16 180 13 980 11 745 12 045 14 765 - 8.7 + 23 10
Syria 6 610 8 480 6 920 5 725 5 755 7 555 - 11 + 31 51
Eritrea 610 2 200 1 740 900 1 330 1 990 -10 + 50 13
Afghanistan 1 080 1 225 1 030 1 125 1 180 1 390 + 13 + 18 9.4
Somalia 885 735 695 565 520 550 - 25 + 5.8 3.7
Iraq 425 530 475 395 410 435 - 18 + 6.1 2.9
Ukraine 10 45 170 175 300 395 + 778 + 32 2.7
Pakistan 215 275 325 355 410 390 + 42 - 4.9 2.6
Nigeria 185 175 200 260 225 235 + 34 + 4.4 1.6
Mali 75 75 105 85 145 225 + 200 + 55 1.5
Libya 15 15 60 150 175 215 +1 333 + 23 1.5
Other 2 590 2 425 2 260 2 010 1 595 1 385 - 43 - 13 9
Humanitarian protection 5 350 5 815 5 695 5 660 6 080 6 890 + 18 + 13 4.8
Gambia 275 325 285 420 590 770 + 137 + 31 11Nigeria 290 480 430 455 580 710 + 48 + 22 10Syria 690 830 645 730 620 620 - 25 + 0.0 9.0Afghanistan 920 930 815 615 570 515 - 45 - 9.6 7.5Mali 430 470 420 390 560 465 - 1.1 -17 6.7Senegal 195 255 195 215 245 455 + 78 + 86 6.6Pakistan 295 290 355 265 345 405 + 40 + 17 5.9Bangladesh 80 55 85 130 160 350 + 536 + 119 5.1Ukraine 25 60 80 110 185 250 + 317 + 35 3.6Eritrea 105 135 125 160 225 195 + 44 - 13 2.8Other 2 045 1 985 2 260 2 170 2 000 2 155 + 9 7.7 31
Rejected 48 710 46 400 62 075 67 825 65 545 71 880 +55 + 10 51
Albania 3750 3140 2690 2640 5460 17295 + 451 + 217 24Kosovo 2555 2790 4545 12770 13430 5055 + 81 - 62 7.0Nigeria 1815 2035 2225 2410 2585 3915 + 92 + 51 5.4Serbia 3620 3430 9800 8370 4980 3740 + 9.0 - 25 5.2Pakistan 3040 2620 2965 3455 2885 3240 + 24 + 12.3 4.5Russia 2250 2305 2455 2225 2550 2380 + 3.3 - 6.7 3.3Bangladesh 1615 1400 1835 1955 1965 2310 + 65 + 17.6 3.2Mali 860 1105 1540 1435 1565 2005 + 81 28 2.8MK* 1385 1330 3615 2415 1845 1950 + 47 5.7 2.7Gambia 730 835 870 1015 1230 1900 + 128 + 54.5 2.6Other 27 090 25 410 29 535 29 135 27 050 28 090 + 11 3.8 39
2015Q3
% change1 on Share
in EU+Sparkline
2014 2015
Q3Q2 Q3 Q4 Q1 Q2
EASO QUARTERLY REPORT — Q3 2015 34
Annex II – List of Abbreviations
EASO European Asylum Support Office
EPS Early Warning and Preparedness System
EU European Union
EU+ European Union Member States plus Norway and Switzerland
Frontex European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the
External Borders of the Member States of the European Union
ISAF International Security Armed Forces
UN United Nations
UNHCR United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
WB Western Balkan countries - Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, FYROM,
Kosovo (this designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in
line with UNSCR 1244), Montenegro, and Serbia