The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) revealed in a report issued Tuesday a 20% decrease in the number of Syrian refugees returning to their country from Jordan during October compared with September. The report attributed the decline to the start of the school year and the approach of winter — factors that usually affect voluntary return movements.
اضافة اعلان
According to the report, more than 13,300 Syrian refugees returned from Jordan to Syria in October, compared with about 16,000 in September. From December 8, 2024, to November 1, 2025, over 167,000 registered refugees returned from Jordan to Syria. The report also noted that around 2,600 refugees returned last week, a figure similar to the previous week.
The demographic composition of returnees has remained stable in recent weeks: women and girls account for about 49%, children for 43%, and men aged 18–40 for around 19%. Most returnees come from host communities in Amman and Irbid.
As of November 2, UNHCR data indicates that around 436,400 registered Syrian refugees remain in Jordan, with 80% living in host communities and 18% residing in camps. The number of registered Syrian children stands at approximately 505,000.
Regional Context
Regionally, UNHCR reported that as of November 6, 2025, more than 1,208,800 Syrians had returned from neighboring countries since December 2024. Turkey accounted for the largest share of returnees, followed by Lebanon and Jordan, with smaller numbers coming from Iraq, Egypt, and other countries in the region.
Additionally, more than 1.9 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) have returned to their areas of origin or plan to do so, while around 7 million people remain displaced inside Syria.
As of November 1, about 2,150 refugees were approved to receive cash assistance under UNHCR’s pilot voluntary return program, which grants refugees a two-week window to return after receiving support.
UNHCR projects that the number of Syrian refugees residing in Jordan will decline to about 415,000 by the end of 2025, in light of political and security developments in Syria, and could drop further to around 290,000 by the end of 2026.
Safe Return
The latest regional survey on refugees’ perceptions and intentions regarding return, released in September 2025, showed that 80% of Syrian refugees expressed a desire to return to their homeland one day. However, the proportion of those planning to return within a year dropped from 40% to 22% among refugees in Jordan, reflecting continued concerns about security, living conditions, and the challenges of achieving a safe and sustainable return.
While UNHCR does not encourage mass or large-scale returns, it reaffirmed its commitment to supporting refugees who choose to return voluntarily, ensuring that returns are safe, dignified, and sustainable.
The agency also noted that Syrians make up about 92% of all refugees in Jordan, compared with 8% from other nationalities, and that the distribution between camps and host communities remains relatively stable.
Despite this stability, UNHCR warned that declining international aid and shifting global funding priorities pose growing challenges for both refugees and host communities. The agency stressed that the continuation of this trend could jeopardize the progress made in recent years in protecting refugees and supporting local communities.
