Sharp rise in number of asylum seekers voluntarily leaving Ireland in 2025

https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/social-affairs/2026/01/06/sharp-rise-in-number-of-asylum-seekers-voluntarily-leaving-ireland-in-2025/

Posted by TeoKajLibroj

10 Comments

  1. madladhadsaddad on

    “Under the new rules announced in September, if a person has appealed a decision but decides to return voluntarily before the appeal ruling is issued, they will receive €1,500, up to a maximum of €6,000 per family. If they receive a final decision on their application, assistance will only increase for families to a maximum of €3,000.”

    Seems cheap in comparison to housing, legal fees etc.

  2. Until word gets around in those poor countries that you can make years salary instantly by travelling here and claiming asylum and leaving again with the payoff.

  3. The question had always been how these voluntary returns are being tracked.

    Does anyone have any insight on this?

  4. asdrunkasdrunkcanbe on

    While one can point to this as evidence that immigration policies are working, I also believe that this may be a sort of economic bellweather too.

    Speak to anyone currently looking for work, and they’ll tell you the job market’s mental. Apparently lots of jobs being listed, but absolutely impossible to land one. And I’m noticing a lot more people finding themselves “out of a job” than I have seen in a number of years.

    This will be happening at all levels, so even undocumented immigrants will be struggling to find cash-only work. Couple that with the housing crisis, and you would expect to see a sharp drop-off in immigrants, and an uptick in emigration. Foreign citizens – illegal/not permitted immigrants especially – are the first to leave when the economy starts lagging.

    I could be wrong, but this is my gut feeling.

  5. 1600 leaving in a year means there’s still several thousand staying here even though their application was rejected.

  6. Complex_Hunter35 on

    For most I would wager it’s the economics of it plus the awful direct provision. Ireland has become an expensive place to exist, never mind live

  7. f-ingsteveglansberg on

    Could it be the housing crisis and the cost of living has made it inhospitable for natives and people from abroad alike?

    With a living wage being 50K+ for a lot of the country, maybe you’d risk elsewhere?