Spain processed a record 167,366 applications for international protection in 2024, second only to Germany, yet granted asylum or subsidiary protection to just 18.5 % of applicants, according to the annual report of the Comisión Española de Ayuda al Refugiado (CEAR). The rate is the lowest in the European Union, where recognition averages 46.6 %. While approvals in Spain rose six points from 2023, the country ended the year with more than 242,000 cases pending. A confidential European Commission report cited by several German newspapers shows the regional picture has shifted further in the first half of 2025. Germany registered 65,495 asylum claims between January and June, a 43 % decline from the same period a year earlier, falling to third place in the bloc. Spain became the largest recipient with 76,020 claims, narrowly ahead of France’s 75,428. Across the EU, plus Norway and Switzerland, filings dropped 23 % to 388,299. Afghans, Syrians and Turks accounted for more than half of the applicants in Germany, while Venezuelans remained the largest group seeking protection across the EU, followed by Afghans and Syrians. In Spain, Venezuelans, Colombians and Malians led the 2024 tally, with most Venezuelans receiving temporary humanitarian residence rather than formal refugee status. German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said the national figures validate Berlin’s tighter migration policies and the EU’s expanded cooperation with North African transit states. EU officials credit stepped-up border enforcement, seasonal factors and new partnership agreements for the broader decline, even as Brussels monitors renewed pressure along the Libyan route.