The European Union of 27 Member States (EU) granted protection status to 295 800 asylum seekers ιν 2019. Compared to 2018 (316 200), total number of persons granted protection status was down by 6%, according to data released today by Eurostat.

In addition, the EU received 21.200 resettled refugees in 2019.

More specifically, Cyprus granted protection status to 1315 individuals, 1500 per million of population (165 refugee status and 1150 subsidiary protection). Out of the total, the Syrians were 1115, or 85%, Palestinians 60, or 5% and Somalian 40, or 3%.

The total number of asylum seekers granted protection in the EU in 2019 comprised of 141 100 grants of refugee status (48% of all positive decisions), 82 100 grants of subsidiary protection (28%) and 72 700 grants of humanitarian protection (25%).

The largest group of beneficiaries of protection status in the EU in 2019 remained Syrians (78 600 or 27% of the total number of persons granted protection status in the EU), followed by Afghans (40 000 or 14%) and Venezuelans (37 500 or 13%).

The number of Venezuelans rose by nearly 40 times in 2019 compared with 2018, when almost 1 000 Venezuelans were granted protection status in the EU.

Among the Syrians granted protection status in the EU, 71% were recorded in Germany (56 100). For the Afghans the highest share 41% was also recorded in Germany (16 200). Nearly all grants of protection status to Venezuelans were recorded in Spain (35 300), 94% of EU total.

In 2019, the highest number of persons granted protection status was registered in Germany (116 200 or 39% of all positive decisions), ahead of France (42 100 or 14%), Spain (38 500 or 13%) and Italy (31 000 or 10%). These four Member States counted together over three quarters of all positive decisions issued in the EU.

In 2019, 540 800 first instance decisions on asylum applications were made in the EU Member States and a further 293 200 final decisions following an appeal. Decisions made at the first instance resulted in 206 000 persons being granted protection status, while a further 89 800 received protection status on appeal.

The recognition rate, i.e. the share of positive decisions among the total number of decisions, was 38% for first instance decisions in the EU. For final decisions on appeal, the recognition rate was 31%.

The outcomes of decisions on asylum applications, and therefore the recognition rate, vary between countries of citizenship of asylum applicants.

Among the twenty main citizenships of asylum applicants on which decisions were taken at first instance in 2019, recognition rates in the EU ranged from 4% for citizens of Georgia to 96% for Venezuelans, 85% for Syrians and 81% for Eritreans.