329 asylum seekers came to Norway in April

asylum seekers sent outAsylum seekers.Photo: pixabay.com

There were 329 asylum seekers to Norway in April, almost half of them were quota refugees from Italy and Greece.

In total, 1,593 asylum seekers have come to Norway in the first four months of the year, but only half, 795 people have arrived on their own, figures presented by the Directorate of Immigration on Friday.

 The Parliament decided just before Christmas in 2015 that Norway will receive 1,500 asylum seekers who are in Italy and Greece during 2016 and 2017.

 By the end of April 1,055 of them had come to Norway. Two thirds come from Italy, and almost all of them are from Eritrea. The group taken to Norway from Greece consists almost exclusively of Syrians.

 Persons who have applied for protection in Greece or Italy may apply to be transferred to another European country and have their application processed there. One of the criteria is that you have at least 75 percent chance of receiving the asylum application.

 About 1,000 asylum seekers this year are from Eritrea and Syria. The rest comes from 71 different countries, with Iraq and Turkey at the top with 78 and 67 asylum seekers, respectively.

 69 of the asylum seekers this year have stated that they are single and minor. One third is from Eritrea, 15 are from Syria and only nine from Afghanistan.

 Six out of ten asylum seekers this year are men, and one in five are children under the age of 10 who have come together with their family.

 

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today