Fewer than 5,000 migrants were granted asylum in Italy in 2005, according to an immigration report issued on Tuesday.
The report, drawn up by top social studies think-tank Censis together with Italian mayors' association ANCI, said Italy processed some 9,350 asylum requests last year and granted 4,600 of them.
It noted that the figure was small compared to most other European countries, with 700,000 refugees given asylum by Germany alone in 2005.
Across the European Union as a whole, more than 1.4 million refugees were granted asylum.
In Germany, Denmark and Sweden there are now eight refugees per 1,000 residents while Italy has 0.35 per 1,000.
The report said that 25% of those who were given asylum last year by Italy were from Eritrea.
Earlier this year, the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNCHR) rapped Italy over its lack of "comprehensive legislation" on asylum.
Although Italy was among the original countries to sign the 1951 Geneva Convention on Refugees, it is now the only European nation which does not have such a law.
The UNCHR said this had created "serious hardships for asylum seekers and refugees, those who have the right to humanitarian protection".
"The lack of comprehensive legislation is also creating significant practical problems for those who work in the sector as well as for police and local authorities, who must apply laws which are unclear and often inadequate," the UNHCR added.
