Background and Key Findings
According to the latest available figures from the Turkish Directorate General of Migration Management (DGMM) there are currently an estimated 3.8 million foreign nationals present in Turkish territory seeking international protection. Most are Syrians (3,424,237 individuals: 3,195,986 urban caseload and 228,251 residing in camps) who are granted temporary protection status, while according to UNHCR 356,843 asylum seekers and refugees from countries including Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran and Somalia constitute another significant group of foreign nationals seeking Turkish humanitarian and legal protection. There is an increase of ~600,000 individuals in the number of Syrian nationals in comparison to last year’s figures.
In addition, there are 593,151* foreign nationals present in Turkey holding residency permits including humanitarian residence holders. The exact number of the humanitarian residence holders is unknown, but it is estimated that there are a few thousand humanitarian resident holders. The breakdown of the recorded increase of 787,364 in foreigners’ numbers in 2017 is shown in the chart below.
According to DGMM, 175,752* irregular migrants of different nationalities were apprehended in Turkey in 2017. Please see Page 4 for more details.
*Data source DGMM (end of 2017), UNHCR (30.11.2017)