Spain’s Office for Asylum and Refugees, operating under the Ministry of the Interior of Spain, reached a historic milestone in 2025 by resolving 160,951 international protection cases, the highest figure since the office was established.

Official data closed on 31 December show a year-on-year increase of more than 67 %, reflecting a significant improvement in the country’s asylum processing capacity. During the same period, 144,396 new applications were registered, positioning Spain as the third-largest recipient of asylum claims in the European Union, after Germany and France.

By nationality, Venezuela clearly dominated the statistics, accounting for over 85,000 applications, nearly 60 % of the total. Mali, Colombia, Peru and Senegal followed at a considerable distance. Venezuela and Mali were the only countries among the top twenty to record an increase compared to 2024.

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Spain sets a record in asylum processing with over 160,000 cases resolved in 2025

In terms of protection outcomes, 7,838 refugee statuses were granted in 2025, representing a 23 % rise compared to the previous year. Authorities also approved 10,103 subsidiary protection cases and issued 57,334 humanitarian residence permits, most of them to Venezuelan nationals.

The overall international protection rate stood at 46.8 %, while the combined recognition rate for refugee status and subsidiary protection reached 11.2 %.

The year also saw a sharp rise in statelessness procedures, with more than 3,000 applications submitted, as well as the continued application of temporary protection measures for people displaced by the war in Ukraine, bringing the total number of beneficiaries in Spain to over 262,000.

These figures underline Spain’s growing role as a key actor in asylum and international protection within the European Union.