The number of people denied entry at the European Union’s external borders rose significantly in 2025, while deportations to non-EU countries also accelerated, according to new

data released by Eurostat.

A total of 132,600 third-country nationals were refused entry into the EU during the year, marking a 7.1% increase compared with 123,835 recorded in 2024.

At the same time, the number of people found to be staying illegally within EU member states declined sharply. Authorities identified 719,395 third-country nationals as illegally present in 2025, down 21.7% from 918,525 the previous year.

The figures are part of Eurostat’s latest report on the enforcement of EU immigration legislation.

Meanwhile, EU countries issued 491,950 orders requiring non-EU nationals to leave their territory in 2025. That represents a 5.8% rise compared with 464,985 orders issued in 2024.

The number of deportations carried out also increased substantially. In total, 135,460 third-country nationals were returned to countries outside the EU, up 20.9% from 112,040 in the previous year.

Among EU member states, Germany recorded the highest number of returns, deporting 29,295 people to non-EU countries. France followed with 14,940 returns, while Sweden reported 11,250.

Most of the individuals returned in 2025 were citizens of Türkiye, accounting for 13,405 cases. Nationals from Georgia (10,475), Syria (8,370) and Albania (8,020) were also among the largest groups affected. Photo by Yarl, Wikimedia commons.