Over 11,000 people have sought international protection in Ireland so far this year. 

Figures from the International Protection Office (IPO) show that 1,187 people sought asylum in Ireland in October alone.

Up until the end of October, 11,142 people sought international protection here.

This is over four times the total from 2021, when lockdown measures saw the number of people arriving in Ireland seeking asylum fall to 2,649.

Asylum

Of the people arriving so far this year, 67% (7,496) were men and 33% (3,635) were women.

Meanwhile, over a fifth of those seeking asylum in Ireland are from Georgia, around 13% are from Somalia and 12% are from Algeria.

If the trend continues, the total for the year is likely to surpass the previous record for people seeking international protection in Ireland set in 2001, when just under 13,000 people arrived.

Housing

Minister for Children Roderic O’Gorman has previously warned that the Government is struggling to find accommodation for asylum seekers and Ukrainian refugees given the high numbers arriving.

The former Fine Gael Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan has raised the issue of the high number of Georgians in the asylum system in Ireland.

Mr Flanagan previously said that the number seeking protection from Georgia was a matter of concern given that the country was working steadily towards EU candidate status.