Overview

• Overall EU asylum applications fell 25% year-on-year to 64,000 in May 2025, driven by a steep drop in Syrian requests.
• Syrian asylum applications collapsed from 16,000 in October 2024 to just 3,100 in May, following the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.
• Spain received 12,788 applications last month, surpassing Italy’s 12,266, France’s 11,868 and Germany’s 9,916.
• Venezuelan claims rose 21% to 8,210 in May, with 94% filed in Spain due to its visa-exempt status and humanitarian residence permits.
• Spain grants protection at just an 18% rate, the lowest in the EU, compared with an average recognition rate of 46% across member states.