The Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) reported on 9 November 2026 that the registration authorities recorded, from January to September 2026 a total of 23,800 arrivals of Syrian nationals in Germany. This represents a decrease of 40.6 per cent compared with the same period in 2025, when Destatis recorded just under 40,100 arrivals. Before the change of power in Syria, the number of arrivals between January and September 2024 was just over 74,600. These figures are based on provisional results from the migration statistics, as Destatis explains in its press release and the underlying tables.
The decline in arrivals is part of a broader trend in Germany’s migration statistics: Destatis has already reported significantly lower arrival figures from several countries of origin in 2025 and during the months of 2026 so far. The reduction among Syrian nationals therefore reflects changing migration dynamics, including fewer asylum applications and an increase in departures in some months, affecting the overall balance. Destatis points out that the figures cited here are based on registration data and are provisional; final annual figures may change following data cleansing.
Several factors are relevant when assessing the decline. First, arrivals (registrations with German registration authorities) are distinct from asylum proceedings and the granting of protection; they include not only people seeking protection but also family reunification, labour migration and other arrivals. Second, political developments in countries of origin, changes to visa and residence rules, and programmes encouraging return can affect travel and migration patterns. Third, Destatis statistics depend on registration practices; not every actual entry or departure is recorded immediately or completely.
The trend remains significant for policymakers and public authorities: a marked decline in arrivals may ease pressure on accommodation and integration infrastructure in the short term, but it also changes long-term planning for labour market integration, education and social benefits. Policy conclusions require additional information, for example on asylum decisions, residence status and voluntary return programmes, which is reported by other authorities.
Destatis provides the figures as provisional migration statistics; its report of 9 November 2026 explicitly states the figures and percentage comparisons cited here. Additional analyses of countries of origin, departures and balances are published in Destatis’s regularly updated tables.
Editor: Daniel Mayer (Article created with AI assistance).