One Schengen country quietly carried out more deportations in 2025 than ever before. About 40 removals a day. The figures were revealed in Vienna on 23 January by Interior Minister Gerhard Karner during the annual migration briefing. The government says the push is aimed at cutting repeat claims and removing offenders faster.
According to the Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum, Austria deported or returned 14,156 people last year through forced removals and state funded exit programs. It is the highest total since records began. Nearly half of those deported, around 6,800 people had criminal convictions, which officials say explains the sharp rise in removals.
Why Austria is tightening rules and speeding up deport cases
Authorities point to tougher border checks and a stricter response to repeated asylum requests. First time asylum claims dropped to 6,849 in 2025. Total applications, including follow on claims and births, fell 36 percent to 16,284.
Another big change came from freezing most family reunification cases while waiting for EU reforms. In late 2023, more than 3,400 people arrived in the last quarter under family visas. In the same period of 2025, that number fell to just 25. Officials say this reduced misuse of the Schengen visa route and slowed new inflows.
For people who are deported, returns are handled through coordination with destination countries and supervised travel routes. Rights groups are watching closely to ensure legal protections are respected.
For readers tracking visa trends and Schengen deportations, these numbers show how fast policies can shift and how quickly migrants can be deported when rules tighten.
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