Turkish Citizens Rank Third Among Asylum Seekers in the EU

The European Union Agency for Asylum has published data regarding asylum applications in EU+ (the 27 EU countries plus Norway and Switzerland) for 2022. The statistics reveal that Syrians are at the top with 132,000 applications, followed closely by Afghans with 129,000 applications. Turkish nationals rank third with 55,000 applications. The agency has indicated that the increase in applications from Turkey is attributed to rising inflation and a regression in democracy within the country.

The top five is rounded out by Venezuela and Colombia, with 51,000 and 43,000 applications, respectively. It is reported that in 2022, a total of 966,000 applications for asylum were received in EU+ countries, marking a significant increase compared to 600,000 in 2021. Additionally, nearly 4 million Ukrainians, who received temporary protection in EU countries following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, are not included in the published figures.