Fewer requests for asylum submitted

© ANP
In February 2016 nearly 2,500 individuals were registered as asylum seekers or as following family members. The decline, which set in after the immigration peak in October 2015, continues. Statistics Netherlands (CBS) reports that numbers of Syrian and male asylum seekers have dwindled since October. The same applies to following family members.

The Naturalisation and Immigration Service (IND) registeredd 1,775 asylum seekers and 690 following family members in February 2016. These numbers were respectively 30 and 13 percent down from January.

Fewer Syrians

In the group of asylum seekers as well as in the group of following family members Syrians constitute the majority, but since October their share has diminished. In February 3 in every 10 asylum seekers and following family members were Syrian nationals. After Syrians, Albanians constituted the largest group in February. The share of Albanian asylum seekers rose to 10 percent in February. Stateless people (mostly Palestinians from Syria) accounted for 8 percent of asylum seekers and following family members. The share of Eritrean nationals fell to 6 percent in February.

Share male asylum seekers down

The share of adult men among asylum seekers is also declining; from 63 percent in September 2015 to 44 percent in February 2016. In the category following family member about one in ten are adult men.