The report, based on data sent to UNHCR by different governments, records 134,900 asylum requests submitted in the first six months in Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. This figure is 14% lower than in the same period last year.
The UNHCR report states that Croatia received 57 asylum requests in the first six months, which is a decrease in relation to 2005, when 81 asylum requests were submitted in the first eight months. The most frequent asylum seekers in Croatia are people from Turkey, Serbia and Montenegro, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Western African countries and former Soviet countries.
Last year saw the lowest number of asylum seekers in industrial countries since 1987, and statistics for the first half of this year indicate that the figure will be even lower.
In this year's first six months, 97,000 asylum requests were submitted in Europe, which is 19% less than in the same period last year.
Similar trends were reported in 24 European Union countries, which saw a 20% drop in asylum requests in comparison to the first six months last year.
In the last few years 80% of all asylum requests were submitted in Europe.
The European share has now fallen to some 70%, according to figures from 36 industrial countries covered by the UNHCR report. At the same time, the share of North America rose from around 20% to close to 30% in the first half of 2006.
These changes are attributed mostly to the introduction of more restrictive asylum laws across Europe and the improved conditions in the countries of origin of most asylum seekers.
The United States received the largest number of asylum requests - 19% of the total number of asylum requests. It is followed by France, Great Britain, Germany and Canada.
Most asylum seekers come from China, Iraq, Serbia and Montenegro, the Russian Federation and Turkey.