The number of asylum seekers arriving in Germany plummeted by more than 600,000 in 2016, government figures show.

The interior ministry said about 280,000 migrants applied for protection in the year, less than a third of the 890,000 applications received in 2015.

Syrians make up the largest group of arrivals, followed by Afghans, Iraqis, Iranians, Eritreans and Albanians.

But only 57 per cent of those from Syria were given full refugee status, compared with 75 per cent of Eritreans.

The acceptance rate for almost all nationalities was below half, with only a fifth from Afghanistan and 2 per cent from Pakistan, averaging at 37 per cent.

Almost 60 per cent of migrants were granted other forms of protection or put under bans, meaning they cannot be deported from Germany, for example in cases where the person’s life would be at risk or where the move would contravene the European Convention on Human Rights.

The unprecedented number of refugees arriving in 2015 generated a huge backlog of claims that civil servants are still working to clear, with more than 430,000 cases still outstanding.

Thomas de Maizière, the German interior minister, said migration authorities remained prepared for “significant challenges” in the future as they continue to process hundreds of thousands of applications.

Refugees settle in Germany Show all 12 1 /12 Refugees settle in Germany Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Zayat, a refugee from Syria, plays with his daughter Ranim, who is nearly 3, in the one room they and Mohamed's wife Laloosh call home at an asylum-seekers' shelter in Vossberg village on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. The Zayats arrived approximately two months ago after trekking through Turkey, Greece and the Balkans and are now waiting for local authorities to process their asylum application, after which they will be allowed to live independently and settle elsewhere in Germany. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity 2015 Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany A refugee child Amnat Musayeva points to a star with her photo and name that decorates the door to her classroom as teacher Martina Fischer looks on at the local kindergarten Amnat and her siblings attend on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. The children live with their family at an asylum-seekers' shelter in nearby Vossberg village and are waiting for local authorities to process their asylum applications. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Kurdish Syrian asylum-applicant Mohamed Ali Hussein (R), 19, and fellow applicant Autur, from Latvia, load benches onto a truckbed while performing community service, for which they receive a small allowance, in Wilhelmsaue village on October 9, 2015 near Letschin, Germany. Mohamed and Autur live at an asylum-applicants' shelter in nearby Vossberg village. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Ali Hussein ((L), 19, and his cousin Sinjar Hussein, 34, sweep leaves at a cemetery in Gieshof village, for which they receive a small allowance, near Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Zayat, a refugee from Syria, looks among donated clothing in the basement of the asylum-seekers' shelter that is home to Mohamed, his wife Laloosh and their daughter Ranim as residents' laundry dries behind in Vossberg village on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. The Zayats arrived approximately two months ago after trekking through Turkey, Greece and the Balkans and are now waiting for local authorities to process their asylum application, after which they will be allowed to live independently and settle elsewhere in Germany Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Asya Sugaipova (L), Mohza Mukayeva and Khadra Zhukova prepare food in the communal kitchen at the asylum-seekers' shelter that is their home in Vossberg village in Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Efrah Abdullahi Ahmed looks down from the communal kitchen window at her daughter Sumaya, 10, who had just returned from school, at the asylum-seekers' shelter that is their home in Vossberg Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Asylum-applicants, including Syrians Mohamed Ali Hussein (C-R, in black jacket) and Fadi Almasalmeh (C), return from grocery shopping with other refugees to the asylum-applicants' shelter that is their home in Vossberg village in Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Zayat (2nd from L), a refugee from Syria, smokes a cigarette after shopping for groceries with his daughter Ranim, who is nearly 3, and fellow-Syrian refugees Mohamed Ali Hussein (C) and Fadi Almasalmeh (L) at a local supermarket on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. All of them live at an asylum-seekers' shelter in nearby Vossberg village and are waiting for local authorities to process their asylum applications, after which they will be allowed to live independently and settle elsewhere in Germany 2015 Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Kurdish Syrian refugees Leila, 9, carries her sister Avin, 1, in the backyard at the asylum-seekers' shelter that is home to them and their family in Vossberg village in Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Somali refugees and husband and wife Said Ahmed Gure (R) and Ayaan Gure pose with their infant son Muzammili, who was born in Germany, in the room they share at an asylum-seekers' shelter in Vossberg village on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity, and are waiting for authorities to process their application for asylum 2015 Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany German Chancellor Angela Merkel pauses for a selfie with a refugee after she visited the AWO Refugium Askanierring shelter for refugees in Berlin Getty Images

“The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) has made more decisions than ever before, almost two-and-a-half times those in the previous year,” he added, saying staff numbers had been quadrupled for the effort.

“The Bamf is now ‘out of the woods’ and with the wind in its sails. Every month, more decisions are made than more applications are received, so the backlog is being cleared.”

Mr de Maiziere said about 55,000 migrants returned home voluntarily last year, compared with 35,000 in 2015. Another 25,000 were forcibly deported.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has been criticised for her decision to open Germany's border to refugees during the height of the crisis, as thousands drowned in treacherous boat crossings over the Mediterranean and Aegean seas.

Right-wing groups have blamed the policy for terror attacks carried out by migrants, including the massacre at a Christmas market in Berlin, which forced a review of national security.

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The Chancellor has promised a “national effort” to ensure that people who are not entitled to stay go home following revelations attempts to deport Isis supporter Anis Amri had failed months before he committed the Berlin attack.

Migration and security issues have dominated the debate ahead of Germany’s federal elections, where Ms Merkel will be running for a fourth term later this year.

The number of refugees arriving in Europe dropped dramatically last year after the EU struck a controversial deal with Turkey aiming to prevent crossings over the Aegean Sea, by detaining anyone arriving on Greek islands under the threat of deportation.

That had been the main route for the vast majority of migrants reaching Germany after journeying through Balkans countries to reach Western Europe.

Border closures and security crackdowns along the route have since left thousands of people trapped in squalid camps, with at least three asylum seekers dying in sub-zero temperatures in recent days.

Despite the fall in numbers, 2016 was the deadliest ever year for refugees, after the EU-Turkey deal made the main route revert to the far wider and more treacherous Central Mediterranean Sea.