Sweden records lowest number of asylum applications since 1997 after massive crackdown in wake of rising gang crime – with immigration minister blaming migrants’ inability to integrate

Sweden has recorded its lowest number of asylum applications since 1997, following a massive crackdown with the immigration minister blaming migrants’ inability to integrate.

For decades, Sweden was hailed as a beacon of compassion, offering refugees an unparalleled welcome with Europe’s most generous support schemes.

The Nordic state went beyond just opening its borders to celebrate cultural diversity by financing migrants’ efforts to preserve their native languages ​​and traditions.

But over the past decade, deadly violence linked to feuds between criminal gangs has escalated amid high migration rates into the country.

During the 2015 migration crisis, Sweden stunned the world by taking in almost 163,000 asylum seekers – the highest per capita number of any EU country.

Nine years later the picture could not have been more different.

In the first eleven months of 2024, only 8,935 irregular migrants arrived in Sweden, of which 4,814 returned home voluntarily, which is the smallest number since 1997.

This dramatic turnaround is attributed to a sweeping package of reforms following a historic 2022 election that ushered in the toughest immigration policies Sweden has seen in decades.

Incredibly, early data now suggests that Sweden could have net emigration for the first time since the 1960s.

Sweden’s migration minister, Johan Fossell, 45, is the architect of this seismic shift but has been blunt about the government’s new direction.

Speak with The timeshe said: ‘We are implementing what we describe as a paradigm shift in Swedish migration policy, and we are doing this with a very clear agenda: we want to limit the number of people seeking asylum here in Sweden.’

He explained that this step does not mean that the country does not love migrants or does not understand the situation they face, but because it is “impossible” to take on the task of integration when such a huge influx.

This is a big difference from the 1970s and 1980s, when Sweden proclaimed itself as a ‘humanitarian superpower’.

Even after the 2015 migration wave, Sweden held fast to its outspoken ideals, but as gang-related gun violence and bombings skyrocketed, critics warned the country was being stretched to breaking point.

In 2023, Sweden had by far the highest per capita rate in the EU and by December 2024, 40 people had been shot dead in the country – a horrifying number for a European country with just 10 million inhabitants.

These figures represented a 35 percent drop compared to 2022, the deadliest year of the gang wars, when 63 people were shot dead.

Police said gangs have started using social media platforms as “digital marketplaces” to openly recruit children, some as young as 11 years old, to commit murders and bombings in the Nordic region.

Inexperienced teenagers, considered expendable by the gangs, are easier for police to catch than those who order the shootings.

Still, 72 percent of fatal shootings were solved in 2023, compared to just 29 percent in 2022, thanks in part to increasing camera surveillance.

Police said they plan to deploy 2,500 cameras and drones this year, a fivefold increase from five years ago.

The radical right Swedish Democrats took advantage of this discontent and gained ground by highlighting issues related to immigration.

Scandinavian neighbors began issuing warnings about “Swedish conditions,” alarmed by the spillover of gang violence to their own borders.

Forssell remained outspoken about the lessons learned, saying the outspoken policy paved the way for a harsh reality.

“We can find housing for people who come here. “The hard part is the integration part of it: finding schools, finding apartments, giving people opportunities to find work,” he said.

The turning point was the 2022 elections.

With the Sweden Democrats polling high, even traditionally centre-left Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson admitted that Sweden did not need any more ‘Somalitowns’ or ‘Little Italies’.

The centre-right moderates only managed to form a government by striking a deal with the Sweden Democrats, giving them significant influence over crime and immigration policy.

Since then, reforms have been implemented at a rapid pace.

Family reunifications have been tightened, residence permits can be more easily revoked and asylum rights have been reduced to the bare minimum allowed under EU law.

Immigrants who do not qualify for residency are being urged to return home, with some being placed under electronic surveillance or detained in special centers.

Sweden’s immigration policy has undergone a massive shift, abandoning its once frank approach in favor of stricter regulations and a focus on control.

The government is now moving away from traditional asylum status and pushing more migrants into the weaker category of ‘subsidiary protection’.

This status, unlike full asylum, requires renewal every 13 months and is only valid for more than three years for those who can prove they are financially independent.

Forssell has made no apologies for the crackdown, and in fairness he revealed that the goal is to return to a pre-1970s immigration model that prioritizes skilled “guest workers” and limits asylum to only those with unquestionable claims.

“We’re going back to basics,” Forssell explained, adding that limiting family reunification has already shown results.

The minister also wants to introduce mandatory language and integration tests for anyone seeking Swedish citizenship.

While most European countries adopted such measures years ago, Sweden’s reluctance to follow suit was once a mark of pride, but now even Forssell dismisses the previous policy as absurd.

He called the option of becoming a Swedish citizen if someone does not speak the language or knows little or nothing about the country “stupid.”

The Swedish shift is also reflected in refugee demographics.

Syrians, who made up a third of the 2015 wave, now dominate Sweden’s refugee population, which numbers 111,000.

Many of them are expected to return home as the Assad regime stabilizes, but Forssell estimates that around 100,000 undocumented immigrants remain in Sweden, forming what he calls a “shadow society.”

This shadow society represents one of Sweden’s toughest challenges.

These undocumented people, many of whom have no right of residence, live on the margins, beyond the reach of state systems, but still within their borders.

Forssell is determined to take tough action, especially against those who have committed crimes and still managed to avoid deportation due to legal loopholes.

Currently, even convicted criminals who cannot be deported are allowed to remain in Sweden, where they receive benefits and hold down a job.

The minister called this ‘completely unacceptable’ and vowed to put an end to it, defiantly stating that if someone is not granted asylum, he or she must return home.

In the past, Swedish leniency allowed undocumented immigrants to reapply for asylum after four years of living in the shadows, a policy that led to tragic consequences, according to Forssell.

It’s a stark turnaround for a country once celebrated as a haven for refugees.

Ten years ago, when Forssell served as a migration spokesperson, foreign observers would have marveled at Sweden’s utopian image.

The minister said Sweden was once recognized as a country where everything worked perfectly before it erupted into chaos.

But now countries are asking Sweden how they turned the situation around so quickly and became a role model in dealing with a seemingly out-of-control immigration crisis.

And while Sweden may no longer be the superpower of its humanitarian heyday, under Forssell’s leadership the country has developed a new identity – one that prioritizes control, integration and a no-nonsense approach to immigration.