Sweden expects to expel up to 80,000 asylum-seekers whose applications have been turned down, says the BBC.
Published : 28 Jan 2016, 09:47 AM
With a population of 9.8 million, the Scandinavian country accepted more than 160,000 asylum-seekers last year.
"We are talking about 60,000 people but the number could climb to 80,000," the BBC cited local media quoting Swedish Interior Minister Anders Ygeman as saying.
The expulsion process will, however, take several years, said Ygeman adding that charter aircraft would be used to deport migrants.
The country’s announcement comes as Europe baffles with tens of thousands people arriving in the continent — mostly fleeing conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.
The BBC report said some 163,000 migrants applied for asylum in Sweden in 2015, the highest per capita number in Europe. Of the approximately 58,800 cases processed last year, 55 percent were accepted.
Swedish migration officials said 35,400 unaccompanied minors sought asylum in 2015, five times the number in 2014.
Meanwhile, neighbouring Denmark has passed a tough migrant law approving measures like confiscating valuables from migrants to pay for their stay.