Cyprus recorded 140 first-time asylum seekers and 110 subsequent applicants in January 2026, according to monthly asylum data published by Eurostat on Wednesday.
For the same month at the European Union level, 51.160 third-country nationals submitted an application for international protection for the first time, recording a decrease of 23% compared to January 2025 (66.745 applications), but an increase of 7% compared to December 2025 (47.650).
At the same time, 9.500 subsequent asylum seekers were recorded, a number increased by 9% on an annual basis and by 3% on a monthly comparison.
The largest group of first-time asylum seekers came from Venezuela, with 7.300 applications, followed by Afghanistan (4.790), Bangladesh (2.940) and Egypt (2.280).
Spain (10.860), Italy (10.660), France (9.290) and Germany (7.645) received the largest number of applications for the first time, accounting for a total of 75% of applications in the European Union.
In terms of population, the EU average was 11,4 first-time asylum seekers per 100.000 inhabitants. The highest rates were recorded in Greece (46,7), Spain (22,1) and Ireland (20,1).
A total of 1.220 unaccompanied minors applied for asylum for the first time in the EU in January 2026. The largest groups came from Egypt (270), Somalia (175), Venezuela (155), Afghanistan (140) and Sudan (70).
The countries that received the most applications from unaccompanied minors were Greece (375), Germany (200), Spain (170), the Netherlands (135) and France (110). As for Cyprus, Eurostat emphasizes that it received 10 applications from unaccompanied minors.
Source: KYPE
