The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) has reported that approximately 3.2 million people were registered as asylum seekers in Germany's Central Register of Foreigners (AZR) at the end of 2025. This figure represents around 3.9% of the country's total population, marking a decline of 2.1% compared to the previous year, a decrease of 68,000 individuals.
Asylum seekers are defined as foreign nationals residing in Germany on the basis of international law, humanitarian considerations, or political grounds. The data reveals significant regional variations in the distribution of this population across the country.
Bremen recorded the highest proportion of asylum seekers relative to its population at 6.6%, followed by Saarland at 5.3% and Berlin at 5.2%. The states with the lowest percentages were Brandenburg and Bavaria, both at 3.0%, while Mecklenburg-Vorpommern registered 3.3%.
Ukrainian nationals constituted the largest group among asylum seekers, totaling 1.164 million people. Syrian nationals formed the second-largest group with 669,000 individuals, while Afghan nationals numbered 321,000. Together, these three nationalities accounted for two-thirds (66.5%) of all asylum seekers in the country.
By the end of 2025, 155,000 asylum seekers who had entered Germany for the first time that year were registered—a dramatic decrease of 46.4% (134,000 people) compared to 289,000 recorded at the end of 2024. Ukrainians represented 60.3% of first-time arrivals with 93,000 individuals, followed by 13,000 Syrians (8.3%) and 13,000 Afghans (8.1%).
The steepest declines in first-time arrivals were observed among Syrian nationals, dropping 73.8% from 49,000 to 13,000 people, and Turkish nationals, falling 65.0% from 17,000 to 6,000 people. Even Ukrainian arrivals decreased by 32.5%, from 138,000 to 93,000 individuals.
For the first time since Russia's invasion of Ukraine began, more boys and men (51,000) arrived from Ukraine than girls and women (43,000). This demographic shift is attributed to Ukraine's decision in late August 2025 to lift the general travel ban for Ukrainian men aged 18 to 22 years. Provisional migration statistics confirmed a substantial increase in Ukrainian immigration between September and November 2025.
Approximately 2.7 million asylum seekers (83.4%) possessed a humanitarian residence permit, indicating recognized protection status. The vast majority of these permits were temporary (88.1% or 2.4 million people), while only 11.9% (321,000 individuals) held unlimited protection status.
Temporary protection under Section 24 of the Residence Act, granted in connection with the Ukraine conflict, was the most common residence title, covering 1.09 million protection seekers (40.4%). Refugee status according to the Geneva Refugee Convention ranked second with 500,000 individuals (18.5%), followed by subsidiary protection for 373,000 people (13.8%).
At year-end 2025, 361,000 asylum seekers had pending applications, meaning no legally binding decision had been made on their protection claims, down from 427,000 in 2024. Additionally, 178,000 protection seekers were registered with rejected status following asylum procedure denials or loss of protection status, making them obligated to leave the country.
Of these, 140,000 people (78.8%) held temporary suspension of deportation (Duldung), while 14,000 (7.8%) had latent departure obligations and 24,000 (13.4%) were subject to enforceable removal.
The most significant percentage increase in residence permits occurred in the category of residence grants for sustainable integration, which rose 42.5% (an increase of 18,000 to reach 60,000 people). The largest absolute increase was recorded for temporary protection, growing 4.9% (adding 51,000 to total 1.09 million people).
This surge in integration-based residence grants connects directly to the Opportunity Residence Right (Chancen-Aufenthaltsrecht), which was in effect from late 2022 through the end of 2025. This program offered a 18-month probationary residence right for long-term tolerated individuals who met specific requirements, providing them with prospects for obtaining formal residence permits.
The approximately 60,000 asylum seekers granted residence under Section 25b of the Residence Act includes permits extended to spouses, life partners, and minor children.
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