Austria reports lowest asylum application numbers since 2020
Austria recorded just under 25,000 asylum applications in 2024, the lowest figure since 2020. According to a government press release, this marks a 58 percent drop compared to 2023 and an 80 percent decline from 2022.
Interior Minister Gerhard Karner highlighted the sharp decrease and credited Austria’s strict asylum policies and international cooperation with the results.
“The decline in Austria has been far greater than in the European Union. With more than one million asylum applications [in the EU], there have been ten percent fewer cases there. Austria has now been ranked ninth in the EU because we have a significantly lower burden,” Karner said during a presentation in Vienna.
Who applied for asylum?
A total of 24,941 asylum applications were submitted last year, significantly down from around 60,000 in 2023 and over 110,000 in 2022. According to the government press release, the largest group of applicants came from Syria, followed by Afghan and Somali nationals.
As reported by Vienna.at, nearly one-third of applicants were aged 18 to 35, and 58 percent were male. Despite the decrease in applications, almost 25,000 positive residence decisions were issued in 2024, with 16,784 people granted asylum and the rest receiving subsidiary protection. Syrians made up the majority of approvals, followed by Afghans and Somalis.
Temporary protection for displaced persons also remained significant, particularly for Ukrainians. A total of 17,860 individuals received temporary protection, while others granted such status included Russians and even a small group of Americans.
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Record year for deportations
Austria also reported a record high in deportations, with 13,307 individuals removed in 2024 - a 3.2 percent increase from the previous year.
“Anyone who commits serious crimes in Austria has no place here. Regardless of whether they come from an EU member state, another European country, or another continent,” Karner said.
Voluntary departures accounted for a significant portion of these numbers. Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum (BFA) Director Gernot Maier stressed the importance of encouraging independent returns: “I prefer everyone who leaves Austria independently to everyone who is forcibly deported.”
The government press release revealed that nearly half of those deported in 2024 had committed at least one criminal offence. The BFA also initiated 1,750 revocation procedures, primarily targeting Syrians, citing changes to asylum conditions such as reduced risks of forced conscription.
Policy changes and European coordination
Karner highlighted several initiatives to curb irregular migration, from domestic policing efforts to international partnerships.
He pointed to ongoing discussions within the European Union about returning rejected asylum seekers to countries like Afghanistan and Syria despite the controversies surrounding these efforts.
“Austria began intensive discussions at the European level on deportations to Afghanistan and Syria in the summer of 2023. It is now apparent that many other countries are also discussing the issue, so it is once again possible to deport offenders, particularly to these countries,” Karner said.
The BFA has maintained its focus on voluntary returns and ensuring operational readiness for deportations, following the Austrian Constitutional Court’s ruling that deportations to Afghanistan were permissible in principle.
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