The number of people applying for refugee status in the Netherlands fell by 50% to 4,500 in the first three months of this year, the national statistics agency the CBS said on Wednesday.

The decline was mainly due to fewer applications from people from Syria, Iraq and Yemen, according to the CBS. The figures are based on data from the IND immigration service.

The drop in refugee numbers reflects a broader European trend and is not linked to immigration minister Marjolein Faber’s “strictest refugee regime ever”, as none of her proposed legislation has yet come into effect.

Frontex, the European border control agency, said the general reduction was the result of tighter controls at the EU’s external borders.

A total of 900 Syrians applied for asylum in the Netherlands in the first quarter of the year, compared with almost 3,000 in the same period in 2024. Just 110 Iraqis applied in the first three months, down from 1,200 a year earlier.

“The situation in Syria would appear to have changed so much that fewer people feel the need to leave the country,” said IND director Rhodia Maas.

The IND is currently not issuing decisions on asylum applications from Syrians due to the changing political situation in the country following the fall of the Assad regime.

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At the same time, some 50,000 people are still waiting for a decision on their applications, she told broadcaster NOS.

The fall in numbers has eased pressure on the Ter Apel reception centre, which is now preparing to close its emergency night shelter.

However, the COA refugee settlement agency has urged local authorities to continue working to provide more permanent housing for refugees.