NETHERLANDS — Eurostat data and quarterly figures showed first-time asylum applications in the Netherlands fell sharply in 2025, while a separate channel for following family members moved in the opposite direction.
The headline number circulating in public discussion is 24,000 first-time asylum requests for 2025, described as a 25% year-on-year drop. No official full-year 2025 total is available as of January 2026, leaving that claimed figure unconfirmed by available data.
What is confirmed so far is the partial-year count. First-time asylum applications reached 16,600 in the first nine months (Q1–Q3) of 2025, a 33% decline from the same period in 2024.
First-time asylum applications cover people applying for protection for the first time in the Netherlands, rather than repeat applications or the arrival of relatives joining someone already granted protection. That definition matters because it can make overall pressures look different depending on whether analysts focus on new claims, repeat claims, or family reunification-linked arrivals.
Quarterly reporting signals a marked slowdown early in 2025. Q1 2025 recorded 4,530 first-time applications, down from 9,005 in Q1 2024.
The quarterly comparison offers the clearest apples-to-apples view because later 2025 quarters are not fully shown in the available quarterly breakdown, even as the Q1–Q3 cumulative total is reported. That creates a gap between what can be firmly stated for 2025 and what can only be described as a claim about the full year.
In 2024, the quarterly breakdown listed 9,005 first-time applications in Q1, 7,755 in Q2, and 7,175 in Q3. For 2025, the same breakdown shows 4,530 in Q1, while Q2 and Q3 are not displayed there, despite the reported Q1–Q3 total of 16,600.
Because of those reporting gaps, comparisons often mix partial-year totals with full-year estimates. Reported figures point to different totals for 2024, listing 2024 full-year first-time applications as ~32,000-38,377 (sources vary), a range that underlines how definitions, cut-off dates, and included categories can shift the headline number.
One reason different totals circulate is that asylum intake can be presented as first-time applications alone or as a broader measure that includes repeats and following-family members. Timing also matters, because monthly and quarterly tallies can move as authorities register arrivals and clear backlogs.
Even with those cautions, the early-2025 quarterly drop stands out. Q1 2025 fell 37% from Q1 2024, as the count dropped from 9,005 to 4,530, and the Q1–Q3 total of 16,600 indicates the slowdown persisted through the first nine months compared with 2024.
An extrapolation from the Q1–Q3 level is also noted. It says extrapolating Q1–Q3 to a full year suggests around 22,100 if Q4 matches the quarterly average (~5,533), while also noting that monthly trends indicate lower volumes later in the year.
Monthly Eurostat figures show that late 2025 did not return to the higher monthly level seen earlier in the year. September 2025 recorded 2,855 first-time applications, while December 2025 fell to 2,735, described as the lowest recent monthly figure.
Earlier in the year, the same Eurostat snapshot identifies March 2025 as a low point at 1,435. Taken together, the month-to-month pattern points to volatility within a year that still tracked lower than 2024, rather than a steady line down each month.
Monthly counts can swing for reasons that do not necessarily reflect a sudden change in underlying demand. It is flagged that administrative timing, registration backlogs, and arrivals can shift when applications appear in statistics, making single-month highs or lows risky to over-interpret.
The composition of first-time applicants also shifted in early 2025 compared with the same quarter a year earlier. In Q1 2025, the top nationality among first-time asylum applicants was Syria with 940, down from 2,905 in Q1 2024, a -68% change.
Other nationalities among the leading groups also fell. Turkey recorded 325 in Q1 2025 versus 495 in Q1 2024, a -34% change, while Eritrea had 235 versus 340, a -31% change.
Some of the steepest proportional declines among listed nationalities appeared in Iraq and Yemen. Iraq fell to 110 in Q1 2025 from 1,200 in Q1 2024, a -91% change, and Yemen fell to 85 from 470, a -82% change.
Demographics in Q1 2025 indicate who reception and processing systems had to accommodate. Three-quarters of Q1 2025 applicants were under 35, with 25% under 18.
Among Eritreans, half were minors. Over two-thirds of Q1 2025 first-time applicants were men.
Those demographic details matter because a higher share of minors can change accommodation needs and the type of support required during procedures. Age profiles can also shape the demand for schooling, guardianship arrangements, and other services while claims are processed.
While first-time claims fell, following-family member arrivals rose sharply in 2025. Following family members recorded 12,100 in Q1–Q3 2025, an increase of +40% year-on-year.
The rise appeared early in the year. Q1 2025 recorded 3,745 following-family members, described as +14% from Q4 2024.
Syria dominated this channel. It is reported that Syria accounted for 81% in Q1 and two-thirds in Q1–Q3, with 3,040 in Q1.
It also lists 3,100 for Syria in Q1–Q3. The figures, as presented, place Syria’s Q1 count alongside a higher Q1–Q3 total for the category overall, underscoring how heavily the following-family trend depended on one nationality group.
Quarterly levels in 2025 reached a recent high later in the year. Q3 2025 hit 4,600, described as the highest since 2017.
Following-family movements can diverge from first-time asylum applications because they can reflect family unity dynamics and timing after protection decisions, as well as how quickly administrative steps allow relatives to travel and register. That means a drop in first-time claims does not automatically produce a drop in total arrivals linked to protection.
A broader intake measure shows how those moving parts combine. Total asylum intake, defined as first-time plus repeats plus family, averaged ~3,500 monthly in late 2025.
That late-2025 level sat below earlier peaks in 2025. September recorded 4,383 in total asylum intake, pointing to a decline from earlier-year highs even as monthly counts continued to fluctuate.
The interplay between declining first-time claims and rising following-family arrivals also helps explain why different audiences can walk away with different impressions of the year. A focus on first-time asylum points to a sharp slowdown, while a focus on family-linked arrivals highlights continuing pressure in other parts of the system.
Those differences also feed into why 2024 baselines can appear inconsistent. Reported figures list 2024 full-year first-time applications as ~32,000-38,377 (sources vary), and that variation can shape the size of any year-on-year change depending on which 2024 total is used.
For 2025, the most concrete benchmark remains the confirmed partial-year and quarterly figures: 16,600 first-time applications in Q1–Q3, and 4,530 in Q1. Alongside that, the following-family channel recorded 12,100 in Q1–Q3, a rise that ran counter to the first-time decline.
Until an official full-year 2025 total becomes available, the year’s headline number will remain contested, with monthly and quarterly signals offering the clearest view of how the Netherlands’ asylum picture shifted through 2025.
First-Time Asylum Numbers Fall in Netherlands with 24,000 Estimate
The Netherlands saw a 33% decline in first-time asylum applications during the first three quarters of 2025, totaling 16,600. Conversely, family reunification arrivals grew by 40% to 12,100. This data highlights a shifting migration landscape where initial claims are falling, but secondary arrivals are increasing. Syrian, Turkish, and Eritrean nationals remain the primary groups, while administrative backlogs and reporting gaps make full-year 2025 estimates difficult to confirm.
