Fewer people sought asylum in Netherlands last quarter

Around 7,710 people applied for asylum for the first time in the Netherlands in the second quarter of this year, 14 percent less than the previous quarter. The number of family reunification requests also decreased slightly, Statistics Netherlands (CBS) reported based on figures from the Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND).

There were 1,300 fewer first asylum applications in the second quarter than in the first quarter of this year. The number of people from Iraq seeking asylum in the Netherlands dropped the most, by 43 percent. The number of asylum requests from people whose nationality could not be determined increased by 14 percent.

Compared to the second quarter of 2023, the number of first asylum applications decreased slightly. In that quarter, 7,950 people sought asylum in the Netherlands for the first time.

The number of family reunification applications decreased by 310 to 2,780 in the second quarter, compared to Q1 of 2024. Family reunification requests are applications to join a close family member who already has a residency permit for the Netherlands. About 70 percent of family reunification requests were filed by people from Syria.

Compared to the second quarter of 2023, the number of family reunification requests increased by 150.

In the first half of this year, the IND received 16,680 first asylum applications and 5,870 applications for family reunification. That is slightly more than in the first half of last year when the IND received 14,890 first applications and 4,540 family reunification applications.