More than 62,000 non-EU citizens applied for asylum in the EU for the first time in October 2025, down 28% on the same month a year earlier.
A total of 62,010 first-time asylum applicants sought international protection in EU countries in October, compared with 86,470 in October 2024, Eurostat informed in a release on Thursday.
Applications were 6% higher than in September 2025, when 58,495 people applied for the first time.
There were also 14,495 subsequent applicants — people who applied again after a previous application — up 80% from October 2024 but 10% lower than in September 2025.
Where applicants came from and where they applied
Venezuelans were the largest group of first-time applicants in October 2025, with 8,140 people, followed by Afghans (5,920), Bangladeshis (3,400) and Syrians (2,915), according to Eurostat.
Spain (12,885) and Italy (12,650) received the most first-time applicants, followed by France (11,245) and Germany (8,815), accounting for 74% of the EU total.
Across the EU, there were 13.8 first-time applicants per 100,000 people in October 2025,.
Measured against population, Greece recorded the highest rate at 58.1 first-time applicants per 100,000 people, followed by Cyprus (33.9) and Spain (26.3).
In October 2025, 1,710 unaccompanied minors applied for asylum for the first time in the EU.
The largest numbers of these children came from Somalia (245), Egypt (215), Eritrea (200), Afghanistan (190) and Venezuela (180).
The Netherlands received 350 first-time asylum applications from unaccompanied minors, followed by Greece (325), Germany (245) and Spain (215).
