Nicosia, Cyprus. Fewer cases filed by asylum seekers and foreign nationals were recorded in 2025 in both the Administrative Court of International Protection and the Administrative Court, the Law Office said on Tuesday.
Administrative Court of International Protection filings
A total of 3,193 cases were filed with the Administrative Court of International Protection in 2025, including appeals and detention and deportation orders. This represented a 48 per cent decrease in new appeals compared to 2024 and a 59 per cent drop compared to 2023.
Of the total, 2,880 cases (90.2 per cent) were submitted by applicants from non-safe countries, 310 (9.71 per cent) from safe countries, and three by stateless individuals. Applicants from non-safe countries increased by 68 per cent compared to 2023 and by 22 per cent compared to 2024, while applicants from safe countries fell by 67 per cent and 22 per cent respectively.
The highest number of appeals from non-safe countries came from the Democratic Republic of Congo (1,153), followed by Syria (374), Cameroon (261) and Nigeria (199). Among safe countries, most applications came from India (28), Egypt (19) and Bangladesh (12).
Outcomes and pending cases
A total of 3,130 appeals were completed in 2025, with 68 successful outcomes. Of these, 19 applicants were granted refugee status, six received subsidiary protection, 33 saw the contested decision annulled, eight had detention orders revoked, and in two cases alternative measures to detention were imposed.
As of January 1, 2026, 6,390 cases were pending, compared to 6,590 at the start of 2025.
Administrative Court recourses against the Republic
In the Administrative Court, 1,308 recourses were filed against the Republic in 2025, down from 1,465 in 2024 and 1,879 in 2023.
Appeals filed by foreign nationals accounted for 55 per cent of all cases in 2025, rising to 68 per cent when including cases related to detention and deportation orders.
Such recourses decreased by 13 per cent compared to 2024 and by 42 per cent compared to 2023. Meanwhile, recourses against detention and deportation orders dropped by 10 per cent year-on-year but rose by 14 per cent compared to 2023.
Published decisions involving foreign nationals
A total of 193 published decisions were issued in cases involving foreign nationals, with 79 per cent (153 cases) decided in favour of the Republic and 21 per cent (40 cases) against it.
What do you think the 2025 case and decision figures indicate about court workloads in 2026?
