4.6. Pending cases
At the end of 2021, over 767,000 applications were awaiting a decision in EU+ countries, similar to a year earlier with a slight 1% decrease. In the first months of 2021, the stock of pending cases gradually declined, but since August 2021 it quickly increased and in just a few months reached the level at the end of 2020. Hence, the stock of pending cases was still higher than in the pre-crisis level in 2014, adding pressure on national reception systems.
About one-third (34%) of all pending cases continued to be awaiting a decision in Germany, with a total of 264,000 open files. Other EU+ countries with a considerable number of pending cases included France (145,000), Spain (104,000), Italy (52,000) and Greece (38,000).
Afghans (103,000) and Syrians (96,000) not only continued to have the most pending cases in EU+ countries at the end of 2021, but their numbers rose, by 10% and 38%, respectively, compared to 2020.