VIENNA, March 12 (Xinhua) -- Austria has seen a large increase in the number of refugees who have had their asylum or protection status revoked, the Kurier newspaper reported here on Tuesday.

Citing figures from the Interior Ministry, the report said that in 2018, under new Interior Minister Herbert Kickl, 1,640 people had either their asylum or subsidiary protection status revoked.

This was more than three times higher than the 500-odd such cases registered in 2017.

Persons with subsidiary protection status in particular saw a marked increase in having their status revoked, up from 175 to 908 over the course of a year.

The ministry said the status can be revoked should the safety and security situation in the countries of origin improve, in particular if they are deemed to be "safe."