Legal News

Hungary has experienced a huge increase in the number of asylum claims being made in the country – although the authorities say they can cope.

It is reported that the number of people claiming asylum in Hungary has risen tenfold in the last year, with asylum seekers from 70 countries seeking refuge.

It thought some of the asylum seekers may be migrants travelling through the EU’s Schengen zone, which permits freedom of movement. Once they have been granted asylum in Hungary they are then able to move on to other parts of the EU.

A large number of asylum seekers in Hungary are from Kosovo and Serbia, as well as Afghanistan and Syria, according to the Hungarian Association for Migrants.

A reporter from the website euronews visited a camp for migrants on the Romanian border at Debrecen. Correspondent Andrea Hajagos said that because Bulgaria and Romania will still not belong to the Schengen zone when they become full EU member states from January 2014, Hungary is still likely to continue as a gateway to western Europe for many migrants from Eastern European countries and countries outside the EU.

More than 300,000 people applied for asylum in Europe in 2012, with many economic as well as political migrants moving across the EU – together with refugees escaping war zones.

The Immigration Office in Hungary told euronews that many migrants left the country shortly after arriving – some without awaiting judgment on their asylum application.

Germany tops the number of applications for asylum in the EU and in East Germany thousands of people have staged a public rally in support of asylum seekers. Germany handles 25% of all asylum applications in the EU and has also recently been at the centre of reports about Roma communities settling in the country.

The pro-asylum rally was held in the East German village of Schneeberg in Saxony on Saturday (17/11/13), following a march by the far-right National Democratic Party (NDP) in protest over an asylum centre in the village. Police reported minor clashes between protesters.

Schneeberg is the location of a refugee shelter for around 256 asylum seekers, including 100 children.

A representative for the pro-asylum demonstrators said:

“We want to demonstrate that we have nothing in common with the NDP and that the residents of Schneeberg will not allow themselves to be instrumentalised.”

It is thought that many asylum seekers from Eastern Europe – including Roma communities – prefer to settle in German speaking communities because of the language.

In the UK, LibDem leader Nick Clegg has responded to fears raised by former Labour Home Secretary David Blunkett that Roma immigration to Sheffield and the north of England may result in riots.

Citizens of Bulgaria and Romania are granted full access to the UK jobs market from 1 January 2014, and Mr Clegg has called for more integration in British communities by Roma.

However, the UK is not the favoured destination for many asylum seekers – and although Germany tops the EU for the most asylum applications, the US receives the most asylum applications annually, with 70,400 asylum applications in 2012 according to the UN Refugee Agency.

The UK received 23,499 applications for asylum in the year ending June 2013, compared with the five main destinations for asylum seekers to June 2012 – America (70,400), Germany (64,500), South Africa (61,500), France (55,100) and Sweden (43,900).

Legal Help with Immigration and Asylum

Duncan Lewis is one of the UK’s leading firms of immigration lawyers and can advise on a range of immigration and asylum issues, including right to work, entering the UK, citizenship, student visas and marriage in the UK.

Contact Duncan Lewis immigration solicitors on 020 7923 4020.