Immigrants in reception centers in Italy 2013-2023

As of September 2023, 141,107 migrants were housed in different types of reception centers in Italy. Reception centers include facilities for beneficiaries of international protection as well as for unaccompanied minors, accommodation centers, and hotspot facilities. In the same period, the Italian region that hosted the highest number of immigrants in its reception centers was Lombardy.

The journey before the reception centers

  In 2021, roughly 45 thousand immigrants arrived by sea in Italy. In the previous year, 34 thousand people reached the Italian shores by sea, one of the lowest amounts registered in the last years. This figure was significantly lower than the peak in arrivals registered in 2016, when as many as 180 thousand people reached Italy through the Mediterranean Sea. The impressive difference in numbers reflected a strong change in immigration policies enforced by the new Italian government in 2018.

Asylum requests

Most of the migrants housed in reception centers are waiting to be granted permission to stay in the country by the Italian government. In 2019, more than 12 thousand immigrants saw their asylum applications accepted. On the other hand, almost 23 thousand applications were rejected in the same year. Among those who were granted asylum, and thus received refugee status, the most represented country was Nigeria, followed by Pakistan.