Only 5 thousand asylum requests in 2025/Escapes with work permits are 4 times higher

2026-03-18 07:12:00, Aktualitet CNA

Only 5 thousand asylum requests in 2025/Escapes with work permits are 4 times

Applications by Albanian citizens for international protection in one of the European Union countries have marked a downward trend over the last three years.

According to the latest data published by Eurostat, in 2025, only 5065 people sought asylum in the EU, a contraction of 30% compared to the previous year.

Compared to 2022, when a new peak was recorded, Albanians' departures through this form are almost three times lower. Requests are also lower compared to the pandemic, when movement was restricted for many months. France continues to remain the most preferred country to seek asylum due to its social policies, followed by Germany.

Theoretically, the drop in asylum applications should signal a slowdown in emigration. However, other Eurostat data show that there is only a shift in the form of how Albanians are leaving the country, with the preference now being through work permits. The latter have increased significantly in recent years.

Eurostat reported that in 2022-2024 alone, an average of 20,000 work permits were granted per year, mainly in Italy, Greece and Germany, up from around 3-4,000 a decade ago. As a result, departures through work permits are now, on average, four times higher than asylum applications. Others also leave for other reasons, with family reunification dominating.

Even EU immigration statistics, also published by Eurostat, show that after the pandemic alone, in 4 years, for the period 2021-2024, at least 180 thousand people have left the country (40-50 thousand people per year), and this does not include data from Greece or the United Kingdom, with the latter seeing a wave of departures that peaked in 2022.

The main group leaving are those aged 25-29, with over 6 thousand people, or 14.3% of the total. They are followed by young people aged 30 to 34, with 13% of the total. The departure of young families with young children is also a strong phenomenon, while the age group under 15 years old accounted for almost 18% of those leaving. In total, 62% of the people who left as emigrants in 2024 were under 35 years old.

Other national data from INSTAT also show that the emigration trend continues to be high. According to migration figures, departures have been stable for more than a decade, but after the Covid-19 pandemic the phenomenon has accelerated significantly, reaching the highest historical levels of the last decade. According to the INSTAT database, from January 1, 2021 to January 1, 2025, Albania had 138 thousand more departures than returns.

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According to Eurostat, in December 2025, 47,650 first-time asylum applicants (non-EU nationals) sought international protection in EU countries, marking a decrease of 23% compared to December 2024 (61,515) and a decrease of 13% compared to November 2025 (54,855).

There were also 9,255 repeat applicants, representing a 29% increase compared to December 2024 (7,180) and a 19% decrease compared to November 2025 (11,435).

In the fourth quarter of 2025, 229,735 first-instance asylum decisions were issued in the EU, an increase of 15% compared to the same period of the previous year (200,005) and 10% more than in the previous quarter (209,770). Of these decisions, 45% were positive (103,550).

In December 2025, Venezuelans made up the largest group of asylum seekers (6,675 first-time applicants), followed by Afghans (4,900), Bangladeshis (3,190) and Syrians (2,025).

Italy (9,985), Spain (9,655), France (8,230) and Germany (6,530) received the highest number of first-time asylum applicants, accounting for 72% of total applicants in the EU.

In December 2025, there were 10.6 first-time asylum applicants per 100,000 inhabitants in the EU. In relation to the population of each EU country (as of 1 January 2025), the highest rates of first-time applicants were recorded in Greece (39.1), followed by Ireland (22.9) and Spain (19.7). /Monitor