Julien Boucher is the director of the French Office for the Protection of Refugees and Stateless Persons (OFPRA), which published its annual report on Thursday, July 18. While the rate of asylum applications has "slowed" in 2024, he noted that France is close to the European average and far behind Germany.
According to Eurostat, France recorded almost 52,000 asylum applications in the first four months of 2024, almost half as many as Germany. Does this put the idea that it is an attractive country in perspective?
France is on par with the rest of Europe in terms of the number of asylum applications it receives relative to the size of its population. In 2023, we recorded over 142,500 applications. This was a high level, up by 9%, but still well below the European average increase of 18% and far behind Germany's level, which alone received over 330,000 applications.
It's not a new phenomenon, but Syrians – who are Europe's leading asylum seekers – head predominantly to Germany due to the existence of a large diaspora, which remains one of the main factors explaining why people choose one country over another.
Will 2024 mark a shift in the number of applications?
While we don't yet have consolidated figures, asylum requests have slowed over the first half of 2024 in France. This is due to opposing trends. There is a drop in Afghan, Bangladeshi and Turkish applications, which were the top three countries of origin in 2023. On the other hand, we have very strong application numbers from Ukraine, Haiti and Sudan. Most Ukrainian asylum seekers have already been granted temporary protection, but given the conflict's long-term nature their prospects of return are diminishing, and they are seeking a more permanent status.
Applications from Haiti, mainly from French Guiana, are linked to the dramatic deterioration of the country's security situation and the violence of gangs that control entire sectors of Port-au-Prince. Lastly, there is a moderate echo of what is happening in Sudan, where the greatest global crisis in terms of forced relocation is taking place. This growing share of applications from countries at war is fuelling a rise in the protection rate. We issued 33% positive decisions in 2023, compared with 29% in 2022, and it continues to increase.
On July 11, the National Court of Asylum (CNDA), the appeal body for asylum seekers whose requests have been rejected by OFPRA, handed down an important decision concerning Afghan asylum seekers. How will this impact the decisions you make?
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