Latest Asylum Trends: Monthly Overview

In April 2026, EU+ countries received just under 54,000 applications for international protection. This was 8% fewer than in March, the lowest monthly level since July 2021 and over a fifth below the 2025 average.

The largest groups in April 2026 were:

• Afghans — around 6,300 applications,
• Venezuelans — around 5,000,
• Bangladeshis — around 2,800,
• Turks and Haitians — each around 1,900,
• Sudanese, Egyptians, Malians and Syrians — each around 1,700–1,800.

Applications remain lower than in most of 2025, mainly because Syrian applications have fallen sharply since late 2024. Syrians lodged around 1,700 applications in April 2026, far below the levels recorded during much of 2024, when they were the main applying citizenship.  In 2025, they were overtaken by Afghans and Venezuelans. The decrease in April was in fact driven by fewer Venezuelans, Bangladeshis and Afghans applying for asylum compared to the previous month.

The largest groups in April 2026 were:

• Afghans — around 6,300 applications,
• Venezuelans — around 5,000,
• Bangladeshis — around 2,800,
• Turks and Haitians — each around 1,900,
• Sudanese, Egyptians, Malians and Syrians — each around 1,700–1,800.

Venezuelans lodged around 5,000 applications in April 2026, ranking second among all citizenships. Most were first-time applications, suggesting that many applicants were newly arrived in the receiving country. Venezuelans can travel visa-free to the Schengen area and their applications remained overwhelmingly concentrated in Spain, which received 94% of all Venezuelan applications in April.

Afghans lodged around 6,300 applications in April 2026, ranking first among all citizenships. Afghan applications have declined since the peak reached in September 2025, which was driven largely by repeated applications in Germany, especially by Afghan women already present there, following legal and policy clarification recognising them as qualifying for protection in light of the restrictions imposed under Taliban rule. In April 2026, some 36% of Afghan applications were repeated applications in the same EU+ country, down from 55% in the autumn of last year.

In April 2026, applications were concentrated in a few EU+ countries:

• France received around 12,000 applications;
• Italy around 10,000;
• Germany around 8,800;
• Spain around 8,700;
• Greece around 3,100.

Together, these five countries received 80% of all applications lodged in the EU+. For many years Germany used to be the main receiving country.

If adjusted for population size, Cyprus recorded the highest level in April 2026, with 340 applications per million inhabitants. It was followed by Greece with 303, Luxembourg with 214 and Ireland with 197. The EU+ average was 116 applications per million inhabitants, or around 1 application per 8,600 people.

In April 2026, the EU+ recognition rate was 30% at first instance. This means that 30% of first instance decisions granted either refugee status or subsidiary protection. The EU+ recognition rate does not include national forms of protection, which are considered as negative in terms of EU-regulated protection.

Yes. In April 2026, recognition rates continued to vary widely by citizenship. 

• Recognition rates were high for Malians (87%), Haitians (81%), Afghans (73%), Sudanese (63%) and Ukrainians (59%).
• Recognition rates were very low for Bangladeshis and Egyptians (each at 2%), Venezuelans and Moroccans (each at 3%), and Peruvians and Georgians (each at 4%).

At the end of April 2026, around 799,000 cases were pending at first instance in the EU+. Around 573,000, or 72%, had been pending for more than six months. First instance pending cases remained high by historical standards, although below the previous peak of around 1.02 million recorded in September 2016. The latest complete estimate for all instances refers to March 2026, when approximately 1.2 million total cases were awaiting a decision, including around 409,000 cases pending in appeal or review.

At present, applications from Iranian nationals remain relatively low and represent a small share of total EU+ asylum applications. In April 2026, Iranian nationals lodged around 540 applications, ranking 30th among all citizenships. This was almost a third lower than in March and does not indicate a sustained increase.

However, the situation remains uncertain. Previous increases — such as those observed following government crackdowns in 2022–2023 — were gradual and limited in scale. In fact, in the past Iranian applications tended to be more affected by visa policy changes in countries of transit. Given Iran’s large population of around 90 million, even a small proportion seeking protection could result in significant increases in applications over a short period of time. At present, however, Iranian applications remain a marginal component of the EU+ caseload.