Report: Asylum Trends 2013
UNHCR
March 2014, 44 pages

In 2013, the number of individuals requesting refugee or asylum status in the 44 industrialized countries covered by this report increased by 28 per cent compared to 2012. An estimated 612,700 asylum applications were recorded in the course of the year, some 133,000 claims more than the year before. This is the third consecutive annual increase and the second highest annual level of the past 20 years. Only in 2001 were more asylum applications registered among the group of 44 countries. Some 30 countries out of the 44 included in this report reported a rise in asylum applicants during the year which can primarily be attributed to an increase in Syrian and Russian asylum applications. This increase notwithstanding, the last quarter of 2013 followed the seasonal patterns observed in most years whereby asylum claims drop significantly towards the end of the year.

Asylum-seekers arriving in industrialized countries undergo individual assessments to determine whether they qualify for refugee status. Consequently their numbers are always higher than those who eventually get accepted as refugees. For the 44 industrialized countries mentioned in the Asylum Trends report, acceptance rates vary widely and tend to be higher among people fleeing conflict. Acceptance rates for people from Syria, Eritrea, Iraq, Somalia and Afghanistan, for example are between 62 per cent and 95 per cent. Acceptance rates from nationals of the Russian Federation and Serbia [and Kosovo: Security Council resolution 1244 (1999)] are significantly lower at around 28 per cent and 5 per cent respectively.

UNHCR tracks forced displacement globally and issues a number of reports each year showing trends worldwide. The three major components of global forced displacement are internal displacement, refugee numbers, and asylum-seekers (together totaling 45.2 million people, as of data from early 2013). UNHCR’s next major statistical update, the annual Global Trends Report, is due for publication in June of this year.

Download the Asylum Trends 2013 report