Are there many refugees in Cyprus?

Since the beginning of 20 17, about 73,200 refugees have arrived in European Mediterranean countries by sea, of which 85% have entered Italy and the rest have entered Greece, Cyprus and Spain. Among them, 273 people entered Cyprus. In the same period last year, 2 1. 1 10,000 refugees entered the Mediterranean countries, and the number of refugees entering Cyprus was 345.

The number of refugees entering Cyprus is small, mainly because Cyprus is an island country and cannot directly enter the European continent and the rich countries in northern Europe through the island. At the same time, Cyprus is not in the Schengen area and people cannot move freely. Although many Schengen countries have strengthened border control, in theory, refugees can freely migrate to other Schengen countries after entering Italy and Greece. Due to the need to show travel documents from Cyprus to other countries, it is basically equivalent to staying in Cyprus for undocumented immigrants or refugees fleeing from war zones. In addition, Cyprus has a strict asylum policy and a low level of economic assistance.