Portugal received around 2,600 new asylum applications last year, the main nationalities being Gambia, Afghanistan and Colombia, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) revealed today.
“At theendof2023, there were around 1,300 asylum seekers, 3,800 refugees and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection and 59,400 temporary protection holders in Portugal,” the organization said in its 2024 global trends report.
In recent years, around 75% of new asylum applications have been submitted within Portuguese territory and 25% at the air border, mainly at Lisbon airport.
The same source stressed that in 2018, twenty years after closing its offices, the UNHCR re-established a presence in Portugal.
With three staff members on the ground, the Regional Office for Europe in Geneva coordinates activities in Portugal.
UNHCR in Portugal focuses on advocacy and supports authorities and non-governmental institutions in providing protection. It also provides training, technical support and advice on asylum and refugee issues.