The year 2015 was a peak moment for asylum requests in the European Union. Relative to its population, more migrants arrived that year across the Union’s eastern border or the northern shore of the Mediterranean in proportion, compared to the United States: 2.4 million for 509 million inhabitants versus 1.1 million for 320 million in the United States, resulting in an immigration rate of 4.7 per thousand compared to 3.4 per thousand.
Over a slightly longer period, from January 2014 to December 2018, more than 4.5 million people sought asylum, which is three times more than in the previous four years.
All this indicates that, contrary to sometimes critical claims, the European Union is not closed and remains one of the largest immigration zones in the world, one of the most attractive, alongside North America, due to the social welfare it offers. However, this immigration is unevenly distributed and differs in nature depending on the country.
This openness to the world can be measured by demographic changes. From Sweden to Spain, including Germany, and even Austria or Hungary, immigrants, meaning people born as foreigners abroad, represent between 10% and 20% of the residents. Sometimes much more, as in Luxembourg (40%), and sometimes much less, as in Finland where barely 2% of the population are immigrants.
These disparities result both from past and present labor needs and from how immigrants perceive the opportunities offered by different potential immigration destinations. This is true for regular immigration, stemming from colonial histories or the delayed results of labor immigration before its gradual closure in the 1970s. It is also true for asylum seekers. This explains the differences in arrival flows.
The desire to reach Northern Europe, Germanic-speaking countries, or Great Britain reflects both generosity and the determined choice of those approaching our continent. It explains why Sweden had to accommodate 163,000 asylum seekers in a single year, which is 1.7% of its population, a record in Europe. Between 2012 and 2018, 400,000 asylum seekers reached Sweden, coming mainly from Syria, Iraq, Eritrea, and Afghanistan.
