Push-backs at the EU’s external borders have increased by 1%: 139,000 non-EU nationals were refused entry into the EU in 2021 compared with 137,800 in 2020. The highest numbers of refusals of entry were reported in Hungary (34,700), Poland (26,200), Croatia (14,200), and Romania (11,000). Ukrainians accounted for the largest number of refusals (50,200), followed by Albanians (18,600), and Moldovans (9,100). This is according to the figures released by the EU’s statistical office Eurostat today. In 2021, the number of migrants illegally present in the EU grew by 22% compared with the previous year: 681,200 versus 557,500 in 2020. France reported the largest number of illegal migrants on its territory (215,200), followed by Hungary (134,100), and Germany (120,300). As for the countries of origin, most of the people found to be illegally present in the EU are from Syria (79,800), Algeria (56,800), and Afghanistan (52,800). By contrast, the number of people ordered to leave an EU Member State decreased: in 2021, about 342,100 people were ordered to leave, compared with 396,400 in the previous year. The countries that expelled the largest numbers of people were France (125,500), Germany (31,500), and Greece (28,800). The largest number of returns were to Algeria (26,400), Albania (22,000), and Morocco (21,800). 82,700 non-EU citizens, however, returned to another EU country. Among those who managed to return were many Ukrainians and Albanians (9,400 each) as well as Georgians (5,400) and Pakistanis (3,200).