Over 38,000 people applied for asylum in Netherlands last year; Up 8 percent

Last year, over 38,000 people submitted their first asylum application in the Netherlands, 8 percent more than in 2022, Statistics Netherlands (CBS) reported. Three-quarters of the asylum seekers were men. Most were younger than 35 years old, and almost 30 percent were children.

Most asylum requests were submitted in the second half of 2023 - over 23,000 of the total 38,000. As in previous years, most asylum seekers came from Syria last year - 13,000 Syrians submitted their first asylum application, slightly more than in 2022. Other large groups are from Turkey and Eritrea.

Last year, just over 10,000 people came to the Netherlands through family reunification - joining family members granted asylum in the Netherlands. That is 7 percent less than a year earlier. The majority were from Syria and Eritrea. Some 60 percent were women, and just over half were children. Of the family reunification requests from Syria and Yemen, over 60 percent involved children.

More Ukrainians have paid work

Around 600 Ukrainians applied for asylum in the Netherlands last year, 460 less than in 2022. European Union countries are taking in Ukrainians fleeing the war with Russia under a separate scheme from other asylum seekers. Among other things, Ukrainians don’t need a work permit to work in the Netherlands.

On 1 November 2023, 55 percent of the over 78,000 working-age Ukrainian refugees in the Netherlands had paid work. A year earlier, that was still 44 percent, CBS reported. Ukrainian refugees in the age group 25 to 45 were most often employed (59 percent), and young people aged 15 to 25 least often (49 percent). There was virtually no difference between the proportion of men and women with paid work.

The majority of Ukrainian refugees worked in business services (51 percent), which includes employment agencies. “It is often impossible to determine to which sector temporary workers are sent,” CBS said. A large proportion (32 percent) worked in the trade, transport, and catering industry. Compared to a year earlier, the share that work in the latter sector increased by 5 percent, while the share in business services decreased by the same percentage points.