Asylum Applications in Austria Continue to Fall

Austria is experiencing a notable decline in asylum applications, with Interior Minister Gerhard Karner describing the trend as "negative migration." In the first half of 2026, roughly 4,900 individuals sought asylum, a substantial 44 percent decrease from the approximately 8,800 applications filed during the same period in 2025.

Concurrently, Austria recorded about 7,000 departures, comprising voluntary returns and deportations, in the first six months of 2026. This marks the first time that the number of people leaving the country has surpassed the number of new asylum applications. Of the 4,903 asylum applications filed, 41 percent were first-time applications from newly arrived individuals, with the remainder attributed to births within Austria, family reunification, or multiple applications by the same individuals.

Syria and Afghanistan remain the primary countries of origin for asylum seekers, each accounting for about a quarter of the applications. Somalia, Iran, Turkey, and Russia follow, each representing around five percent of the total. When considering only newly arrived asylum seekers, Afghans lead with 420 applications, followed by Syrians (188) and Iranians (171).

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Different measures have led to the number of deportations in the first half of the year being higher than the number of new asylum applications. This path and negative migration must now be secured. The European asylum pact is an important prerequisite for us to be masters in our own house again in Europe.

Approval rates for asylum applications show considerable variation. Between January and June 2026, 27 percent of applications were rejected, while 16 percent were granted asylum and another 16 percent received subsidiary protection. Iranians had the highest success rate, with 76 percent of their applications being approved, followed by Afghans at 69 percent. In contrast, only 32 percent of Syrian applications were successful, a significant drop from the 67 percent approval rate in 2024.

Family reunification has also seen a sharp decline, with only 48 individuals arriving under this category by the end of June 2026, compared to approximately 700 in the same period of 2025 and around 6,000 in 2024. Karner indicated that future family reunification quotas should be "very, very low." He emphasized the importance of the European asylum pact, which came into effect in June, in regaining control over migration policies within Europe. The pact includes provisions for asylum procedures outside the EU and the establishment of return centers in third countries, with Austria collaborating with Germany, Denmark, Greece, and the Netherlands on such initiatives, though specific locations remain undisclosed.

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