BRUSSELS, 28th April, 2023 (WAM) – In 2022, EU countries granted protection status to 384,245 asylum seekers, up by 40% compared with 2021 (275,040), according to data published by Eurostat today.
Among the 384,245 asylum seekers who were granted protection status in 2022 in the EU, 44% received refugee status, 31% were given subsidiary protection, and 25% received humanitarian protection. Compared with 2021, the number of refugee status granted increased by 22%, subsidiary protection was up by 48%, and humanitarian protection registered the highest increase with 72%.
The highest number of people who received protection status was reported by Germany (159,365, 41% of the EU total), ahead of France (49 990, 13%), Italy (39, 660, 10%), and Spain (35, 765, 9%). Together, these four countries granted 73% of the protection requests at the EU level
The largest group who obtained protection status in the EU in 2022 were Syrians (29% of the total number of people granted protection status in the EU). They were followed by Afghans (23%) and Venezuelans (6%).