# France (Somali diaspora) > 15,287 people from Somalia held protection in France at the end of 2024. Who they are, how they came, Mayotte, asylum and ties home. Source page: https://calankii.com/en/diaspora/france/ Last checked: 2026-11-12 Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com) ## How many Somalis live in France? At the end of 2024, 15,287 people from Somalia were under the protection of OFPRA, France's office for refugees and stateless people ([OFPRA, Rapport d'activité 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). Of these, 5,752 held refugee status and 9,535 held subsidiary protection ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). Women were 46.1% of the refugees and 32.2% of those with subsidiary protection ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). UNHCR uses the same base. It counted 15,287 Somali refugees in France at the end of 2024, and 17,014 refugees plus 1,783 asylum seekers at the end of 2025 ([UNHCR Refugee Data Finder API, France, 1990 to 2025](https://api.unhcr.org/population/v1/population/?limit=200&yearFrom=1990&yearTo=2025&coo=SOM&coa=FRA)). These counts leave out Somalis who became French citizens, came by other routes, or were born in France. The 2006 French census counted 1,373 people born in Somalia ([France–Somalia relations, Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France%E2%80%93Somalia_relations)). ## How did Somalis come to France? France was not a main destination in the 1990s. UNHCR counted 530 Somali refugees in France in 1995 and 587 in 2005 ([UNHCR API](https://api.unhcr.org/population/v1/population/?limit=200&yearFrom=1990&yearTo=2025&coo=SOM&coa=FRA)). The number passed 1,000 in 2010 ([UNHCR API](https://api.unhcr.org/population/v1/population/?limit=200&yearFrom=1990&yearTo=2025&coo=SOM&coa=FRA)). Growth then sped up. Somali refugees in France rose from 2,007 in 2015 to 5,774 in 2020 and 13,663 in 2023 ([UNHCR API](https://api.unhcr.org/population/v1/population/?limit=200&yearFrom=1990&yearTo=2025&coo=SOM&coa=FRA)). Most arrived overland or by sea through other European countries; see [Migration routes](/en/diaspora/migration-routes/). ## Who applies for asylum, and why? In 2024, 2,036 people from Somalia made a first asylum application in France, 5.8% more than in 2023 ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). Somalia was the 17th-largest nationality among applicants ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). Women were 36.1% of applicants and minors 25%, and the average age was 30.8 ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). Most applicants said they came from south-central Somalia, mainly Mogadishu, [Lower Shabelle](/en/infrastructure/k50-airstrip/) and [Hiiraan](/en/regions/hiiraan/) ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). Most gave refusal to work with or submit to [Al-Shabaab](/en/history/al-shabaab/) as their reason for leaving ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). Others cited local conflicts, persecution as members of minority groups, or refusal to join forces fighting Al-Shabaab after 2022 ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). Women often described refusing forced marriage, or refusing female genital cutting for their daughters ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). For the wider reasons people leave, see [Why and how Somalis left](/en/diaspora/why-and-how-somalis-left/). ## How many get protection? In 2024 OFPRA made 2,227 decisions on Somali applications and granted protection in 53.3% of them ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). It gave refugee status to 424 people and subsidiary protection to 760 ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). The asylum appeals court (CNDA) granted protection to another 492, for 1,676 in all ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). Refugee status and subsidiary protection carry different papers and residence permits. See [Refugee papers and status](/en/diaspora/refugee-papers-and-status/). ## Why do Somalis go to Mayotte? Mayotte is a French department in the Indian Ocean, and asylum there is French asylum. In 2024 Somalis made 15% of first asylum applications in Mayotte, after people from Congo and the Comoros ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). Mayotte received 2,622 applications that year, 97% of all in France's Indian Ocean territories ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). The sea route is dangerous. In November 2024 about 70 Somalis left Mombasa, Kenya, in fishing boats bound for Mayotte, more than 997 km away ([AP via Africanews, 26 December 2024](https://www.africanews.com/2024/12/26/somali-migrant-survives-sea-tragedy-vows-to-try-again-for-europe/)). The engines broke down, and 25 people died at sea off Madagascar before 48 were rescued ([AP via Africanews](https://www.africanews.com/2024/12/26/somali-migrant-survives-sea-tragedy-vows-to-try-again-for-europe/)). Survivors said each paid smugglers US$6,500, after flying from Mogadishu to Nairobi and taking a bus to Mombasa ([AP via Africanews](https://www.africanews.com/2024/12/26/somali-migrant-survives-sea-tragedy-vows-to-try-again-for-europe/)). They were flown home in early December 2024 ([AP via Africanews](https://www.africanews.com/2024/12/26/somali-migrant-survives-sea-tragedy-vows-to-try-again-for-europe/)). ## Who speaks for Somalis in France? French public bodies decide on protection and publish the numbers. OFPRA decides asylum claims and protects recognised refugees, and the CNDA hears appeals ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). OFPRA also sent officers to Mayotte in 2024 to interview applicants, including Somalis ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). France and Somalia established relations soon after Somalia's independence, and Somalia has had an embassy in Paris ([France–Somalia relations, Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France%E2%80%93Somalia_relations)). ## What do Somalis in France face now? - **A young community:** a quarter of Somali applicants in 2024 were minors ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). OFPRA also recorded 22 unaccompanied Somali children ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). - **Mostly subsidiary protection:** nearly two of every three protected Somalis held subsidiary protection rather than refugee status at the end of 2024 ([OFPRA, 2024](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf)). - **Waiting:** 1,783 Somali asylum seekers were waiting for a decision at the end of 2025 ([UNHCR API](https://api.unhcr.org/population/v1/population/?limit=200&yearFrom=1990&yearTo=2025&coo=SOM&coa=FRA)). ## How are Somalis in France tied to home? Most Somali refugees in France were recognised after 2015, when there were only 2,007 ([UNHCR API](https://api.unhcr.org/population/v1/population/?limit=200&yearFrom=1990&yearTo=2025&coo=SOM&coa=FRA)). Worldwide, Somalis abroad sent home US$3,134 million in 2025, about 24% of the economy ([Central Bank of Somalia, Annual Report 2025](https://centralbank.gov.so/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Annual-Report_2025.pdf)). For the full picture, see [Life after leaving](/en/diaspora/life-after-leaving/) and [Somali refugees by the numbers](/en/diaspora/somali-refugees-by-the-numbers/). ## Related pages - [Somali diaspora hub](/en/diaspora/) - [Migration routes](/en/diaspora/migration-routes/) - [Refugee papers and status](/en/diaspora/refugee-papers-and-status/) - [Italy (Somali diaspora)](/en/diaspora/italy/) - [Switzerland (Somali diaspora)](/en/diaspora/switzerland/) - [Germany (Somali diaspora)](/en/diaspora/germany/) ## Sources 1. OFPRA (Office français de protection des réfugiés et apatrides). "Rapport d'activité 2024." June 2025. [ofpra.gouv.fr](https://www.ofpra.gouv.fr/sites/default/files/2025-06/OFPRA_RA_2024_BD_PaP.pdf). Checked 2026-11-12. 2. UNHCR. Refugee Data Finder API, Somalia to France, 1990 to 2025. [api.unhcr.org](https://api.unhcr.org/population/v1/population/?limit=200&yearFrom=1990&yearTo=2025&coo=SOM&coa=FRA). Checked 2026-11-12. 3. Associated Press, via Africanews. "Somali migrant survives sea tragedy, vows to try again for Europe." 26 December 2024. [africanews.com](https://www.africanews.com/2024/12/26/somali-migrant-survives-sea-tragedy-vows-to-try-again-for-europe/). Checked 2026-11-12. 4. Central Bank of Somalia. "Annual Report 2025." 2026. [centralbank.gov.so](https://centralbank.gov.so/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Annual-Report_2025.pdf). Checked 2026-11-12. 5. Wikipedia. "France–Somalia relations." [en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/France%E2%80%93Somalia_relations). Checked 2026-11-12. --- I want to help with this: email hello@calankii.com. Fix this page: email hello@calankii.com with the page link and your source.