Download the report

• Asylum and migration overview 2024 (external website)
• Asylum and Migration Overview 2024 – Statistical Annex (external website)
• Norway's Country Fact Sheet 2024 (external website)

Key points from the report

• 2024 was marked by ongoing geopolitical instability in both the immediate EU neighbourhood and beyond, with multiple crises such as Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, conflicts in the Middle East, and unrest in various parts of Africa, significantly influencing migration patterns.
• 2024 marked a landmark change in EU asylum and migration policy with the adoption of the Pact on Migration and Asylum. The pact is set to apply from June 2026, introducing a new, more coordinated approach to managing asylum and migration.
• Several EMN Member Countries introduced more restrictive migration and asylum policies. Some developments were linked to national security agendas, and others aimed to combat misuse of migration channels, ease pressure on asylum and reception systems, address housing shortages, and resolve integration challenges.
• First-time asylum applications in the EU and Norway decreased from 1,054,645 in 2023 to 917,215 in 2024 (-13%), with the highest numbers of applicants from Syria, Venezuela, and Afghanistan. Many EMN Member and Observer Countries took steps to improve the efficiency and fairness of international protection systems.
• Irregular border crossings into the EU dropped by 38% in 2024, falling to just over 239,000 detections, the lowest since 2021. This overall decline was due to a 59% reduction in arrivals via the Central Mediterranean route (with fewer departures from Tunisia and Libya) and a 78% decrease in arrivals via the Western Balkan route.
• Major developments in border and Schengen policy:
  • Schengen Borders Code: Revised to strengthen external border management and clarify the conditions for internal border controls.
  • The New Screening Regulation: Revised to reinforce control of external borders by imposing a common Schengen discipline on all Member States to carry out identity, security, health and vulnerability checks on each irregular migrant and asylum seeker upon entry.
  • EU border information system: Ongoing preparations to improve coordination and security.
  • Enlargement of the Schengen Area: Integration of Bulgaria and Romania.
• Addressing labour shortages and skills gaps remained a key driver of legal migration policy across the EU and EMN Member and Observer Countries. Reforms focused on attracting and retaining third-country nationals across a wide range of occupations and sectors, including healthcare, agriculture, and information and communications technology, through simplified and digitalised work permit procedures, fast-track schemes, and improved pathways for students and graduates to join the labour market.
• There was a focus on preventing labour exploitation and the protection of migrant workers, driven by growing concerns about specific sectors of the labour market, such as construction, agriculture and the tourism industry. Fourteen EMN Member and Observer Countries, including Norway, addressed risks or actual cases of labour exploitation through diverse measures.
• Developments in return and readmission focused on strengthening enforcement, addressing gaps that leave individuals without a clear legal status or resolution in their migration and return process, enhancing operational cooperation, including joint return operations, and new bilateral agreements at national level. Voluntary return and reintegration were promoted through expanded counselling and financial incentives, and cooperation with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency (Frontex), with a growing emphasis on sustainable reintegration and preventing further migration.
• Migration and development policies continued to address root causes of irregular migration, promote circular migration, and harness diaspora contributions. Notable initiatives supported youth employment, skills development, and economic resilience in partner third countries. In cooperation with ICMPD, Norway opened a migrant resource centre in Iraq that helps build capacity for local and national government and provides comprehensive information on migration-related challenges and opportunities, raising awareness of migration processes, protecting migrants’ rights, and preventing irregular migration.