Germany is the main destination country for refugees in the EU

The European Union will take in more than one million refugees in 2023. Germany is by far the main destination country for asylum seekers. In Brussels, new records are also expected next year.

According to the European Union Asylum Agency (EUAA), the number of asylum seekers in Germany and Europe has risen massively this year. In October alone, the agency registered around 123,000 applications, the highest monthly figure for seven years, EUAA Director Nina Gregori told the Funke Mediengruppe newspaper. The total number of asylum applications in the EU will be "well over one million" in 2023. Gregori does not expect the situation to ease, on the contrary: "The world around us is becoming increasingly unstable. Refugees' need for protection will therefore not decrease in 2024 and beyond, but in some cases even increase." 2024 will be a "challenging year".

According to the report, a total of around 937,000 applications were registered in the EU by the end of October - an increase of 22% compared to the same period last year. In Germany alone, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) counted 325,801 asylum applications by the end of November, according to the newspaper - an increase of 52% compared to the first eleven months of the previous year. Germany remains the main destination country for asylum seekers in the EU, explained the EU Asylum Agency. According to the EUAA, Germany accounted for 27 percent of all asylum applications in October - more than the second and third-placed countries France and Italy combined.

No quick relief through asylum reform

The number of refugees from Ukraine has also continued to rise. At the end of October, there were 4.16 million Ukrainians registered in the EU who were enjoying temporary protection here - 320,000 more than in January, said Gregori. At the end of October, Germany was the most important host country in the EU with around 1.17 million Ukrainian refugees, while Poland was the second most important with 957,000 Ukrainians. Gregori welcomed the recent agreement on a reform of the Common European Asylum System. At the same time, she dampened hopes for rapid relief: "The new pact is not a panacea. No one should expect an immediate change, not even in the numerical development of asylum applications."

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