Recognised refugee statistics in Greece in 2025
Deportations from EU Countries, constant barriers to integration
European countries are ramping up deportations of recognised refugees to Greece according to latest official statistics for 2025, processed and published today, while persisting legal and practical barriers to people’s access to documents and to dignified living conditions in the country persist unresolved.
The latest data supplied by the Hellenic Police in response to parliamentary questions refer to 9,179 requests for readmission of recognised refugees from other European states in 2025. This is more than a fourfold increase from 2,468 requests in 2024. The overwhelming majority of requests came from Germany (7,467), whose requests rose by 555% from 2024 to 2025. Most requests for readmission of recognised refugees from Germany (5,469) had not been processed yet by the Hellenic Police at the end of last year.
Throughout 2025, the Hellenic Police examined 3,710 readmission requests, corresponding to a total of 5,437 people. More than 80% of those cases came from two countries alone: Switzerland (2,513) and Germany (2,192).
94% of requests for readmission of recognised refugees back to Greece were granted (5,088 out of 5,437 cases).
As for actual deportations to Greece, the number of people (forcibly) readmitted in 2025 reached 725, a marked increase compared to 390 in 2024. These readmissions exclude cases of people who voluntarily departed from other countries and returned to Greece after receiving a negative asylum decision and/or a return decision in those countries.
Returns of recognised refugees to Greece are therefore steadily increasing, in spite of chronic, unresolved legal and practical barriers to people’s access to essential documents and to core socio-economic rights, not least housing and health care.
Official statistics of the Greek authorities for 2025 reveal chronic issues that are steadily deteriorating, which are summarised in this note. These include protracted delays in the renewal of identity documents of beneficiaries of international protection, barriers and chronic deficiencies across the different steps of the family reunification process, as well as withdrawals of protection status.
