France issued a record number of first residence permits last year, at 323,260 (+1.4% compared to 2022) and expulsions increased sharply, the Interior Ministry said on Thursday. “The 2023 immigration figures reflect our political priorities,” welcomed Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin on X (ex-Twitter).
The dynamic of residence permits was “driven by employee permits” according to Beauvau, which reports in its annual report on immigration a 5% increase in permits issued for economic reasons (54,630). Student titles remained almost stable (+1%) at 103,500, making them the leading reason for issuance. Those for family reasons fell by 5% to 91,000. In total, the Maghreb countries represented a third of the residence permits issued, with, in order, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia.
IMMIGRATION FIGURES 2023. Find my reaction pic.twitter.com/kWsxWsKuQ8
— Gérald DARMANIN (@GDarmanin) January 25, 2024
Evictions increased by 10%
Regularizations of undocumented people were almost stable (+0.3%) at 34,400. This includes a 5% increase in regularized undocumented workers, to 11,411, while regularization through work (on a case-by-case basis and under the responsibility of prefects) is one of the aspects of the immigration law passed. in December. Furthermore, “we have a very significant increase in expulsions,” said Gérald Darmanin.
These increased by 10% last year to exceed the 17,000 mark, according to the report. An increase in particular “linked to the resumption of consular cooperation with Algeria”, whose nationals are the first to be removed (2,562, +36%), according to Beauvau. In detail, forced removals to third countries increased by 13% to 5,700 people. Gérald Darmanin also welcomed the “4,686 foreign delinquents returned to their country of origin in 2023 compared to 3,615 in 2022 (i.e. +30%)”.
An increase in asylum requests “significantly lower than the European average”
France also had more than 62,400 displaced Ukrainians settled in France at the end of 2023, beneficiaries of temporary protection. And 61,640 people acquired French nationality (-22%) last year, which according to Beauvau represents “the lowest figure since 2018” and is explained by an “increase in the level of French proficiency required since 2020” . Finally, the ministry reports 145,522 first asylum applications (+6%), an increase “significantly lower than the European average” and in particular in Germany which experienced a 51% increase in applications.
Already on Tuesday, the Refugee Protection Office reported an 8.6% increase in asylum applications, to a historic level of 142,500 applications. These figures are published a few hours before the highly anticipated decision of the Constitutional Council on the controversial immigration bill. According to lawyers and parliamentarians, dozens of measures could be reversed, whether it be the tightening of access to social benefits and family reunification, the calling into question of land rights or even migration quotas.