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Processing of Ukrainian asylum applications in the Netherlands

◆5 sources

The Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that the Netherlands may no longer exclude asylum applications from Ukrainians covered by temporary protection. More than 140,000 previously shelved applications must be assessed by the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND), adding to pressure on an agency that is already behind in its work. Asylum Minister Bart van den Brink said he did not yet know when the applications would be processed. In a letter to the House of Representatives, he said other asylum applications would be given priority.

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Immigration and Residency

Bill to penalise obstructing return after asylum rejection

6 sources

The cabinet presented a bill under which foreign nationals who are not allowed to remain in the Netherlands could face criminal prosecution, including a possible prison sentence, if they actively obstruct their removal or fail to cooperate with their return to their country of origin. The proposal concerns asylum seekers whose applications have been processed and rejected. The bill replaces a broader proposal to criminalise illegal residence, which was rejected by the Senate in April. Amsterdam alderman for reception Zita Pels criticised the new proposal as a disguised form of criminalising illegal residence.

Immigration and Residency

Municipalities placed under supervision over asylum reception

5 sources

Twenty-one additional Dutch municipalities were placed under supervision by asylum minister Bart van den Brink because they do not provide sufficient reception places for asylum seekers. The total number under supervision rose from 42 to 63, more than 18 percent of all municipalities in the Netherlands. A single report identified four of the newly supervised municipalities in North Holland as Dunkerland, Enkhuizen, Koggenland and Stede Broec. They must explain how they will meet their obligations under the dispersal law; if they do not, the government can take over the decision to establish an asylum reception centre.

Immigration and Residency

Additional municipalities placed under supervision over asylum reception

6 sources

The cabinet placed 21 additional municipalities under enhanced supervision because they were not providing enough reception places for asylum seekers under the Spreidingswet. The move brought the total to 63 municipalities, or 18.4% of all municipalities; 42 had already been placed under supervision. The newly supervised municipalities include Altena, Bernheze, Bladel, Heusden, Sint-Michielsgestel and Steenbergen in Noord-Brabant, and Weert, Meerssen and Maasgouw in Limburg. The municipalities must explain to the ministry how they will comply with the law; if they do not, the national government can intervene and decide outside the municipality.