In 2025, the IND made 15.6 thousand initial asylum decisions on asylum applications. Unlike previous years, slightly more asylum applications were rejected (8.1 thousand) than granted (7.4 thousand). Especially in the second half of the year, more applications were rejected. These figures are compiled for EU statistics and are based on EU definitions.
In 2025, 70 percent fewer asylum applications were granted on the basis of subsidiary protection compared to a year earlier. This is a form of protection for people who do not qualify for refugee status but face serious risks if returned to their country of origin. In 2025, 2.9 thousand people received an asylum permit based on subsidiary protection, 7.0 thousand fewer than a year earlier.
Also, 35 percent fewer asylum applications were granted on the basis of refugee status. 3.4 thousand refugees received an asylum permit, 1.9 thousand fewer than a year earlier. There were 35 percent more asylum applications granted on the basis of humanitarian protection. These are people who receive protection due to distressing personal circumstances and cannot return to their country of origin.
In recent years, many people fled from Syria to the Netherlands. This has been the largest group for which asylum decisions are made for years. In 2025, the number of Syrian asylum applications and decisions dropped sharply. An important cause is the change of power in Syria at the end of 2024 and the temporary moratorium that followed.
In 2025, the IND made 390 decisions on Syrian asylum applications, 28 percent of which received an asylum permit. A year earlier, there were 10.7 thousand asylum decisions, of which 95 percent received a permit.
30 Syrians received a permit on the basis of refugee status, in 2024 this was 2.9 thousand. Also, 25 Syrians received a permit on the basis of subsidiary protection, a year earlier this was 7.2 thousand.
The IND made 15.2 thousand decisions on asylum applications from asylum seekers outside Syria. The service rejected 67 percent more of their applications than the year before. Approximately the same number of permits were granted on the basis of subsidiary protection. In addition, more permits were granted on the basis of refugee status and humanitarian grounds.
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