Russians Top S. Korea's Asylum Applications for Third Year in 2025
Media, citing figures from the Justice Ministry, reported that 2,026 Russian nationals filed for refugee status last year — accounting for 13.8% of the 14,626 total applications recorded nationwide. Despite the steep drop from 4,546 Russian applicants logged in 2024, the group has held the top spot among asylum-seeking nationalities since 2023, when filings surged to 5,750 — a fivefold jump from 2022 levels.
Trailing Russians in the rankings were applicants from India at 1,462 and Kazakhstan at 1,216.
A Justice Ministry official attributed the sustained influx of Russian applicants to the grinding Russia-Ukraine war and ongoing military conscription pressures back home. Yet despite three consecutive years of leading the tally, not a single Russian applicant was granted refugee status in 2025.
South Korea approved 135 refugees in total last year, with 75 originating from Myanmar making up the largest recognized group.
The country's asylum framework stretches back more than three decades — South Korea signed the UN Refugee Convention in 1992 and began formally processing applications in 1994. Since then, only 1,679 individuals have been granted refugee status, reflecting an overall recognition rate of just 2.7%, according to ministry figures.
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