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National Asylum Developments Database

 

The National Asylum Developments Database presents legislative, institutional and policy developments related to asylum since 2018.

Searches can be narrowed down by:

  • Country
  • Year
  • Type of development: legislative, institutional or policy 
  • Thematic area: access to procedure, access to information, legal assistance and representation, interpretation services, special procedures, procedures at first instance, reception of applicants for international protection, detention, procedures at second instance, country of origin information, statelessness in the asylum context, content of protection, return of former applicants, resettlement and humanitarian admission programmes.

Details on each development and further analysis can be consulted in the Asylum Report series.
 

Types of policies and practices reported in the National Asylum Developments Database

The National Asylum Developments Database can be searched by institutional, legislative and policy changes. There are three types of policy developments:

Policies and practices related to the integrity of national asylum systems aim to swiftly identify unfounded asylum applications and ensure that financial, human and administrative resources are not dissipated on such claims. These measures involve efforts to rapidly establish an applicant’s identity, including age, country of origin, travel route and security concerns if any. These facts help to better assess the credibility of the applicant’s statements and determine whether beneficiaries of international protection are still in need of protection. The prevention of unintentional misuse of the asylum procedure and its integrity are also supported by the provision of information to asylum applicants and beneficiaries of international protection on their respective rights and obligations and related procedural arrangements.

Policies and practices that improve the efficiency of national asylum systems include digitalisation and the use of new technologies in the framework of asylum, prioritising or fast-tracking applications, the re-organisation of the procedure itself or implementing changes in the number of staff employed.

Policy and practice aiming to enhance the quality of national asylum systems contribute to increasing fairness, integrity and efficiency. Quality assurance systems, guidance materials and capacity-building measures typically pay off on the initial investment and efforts. The initiatives include staff training, revising existing guidance materials and monitoring the quality of the decisions delivered.

The database presents validated factual information and does not imply any endorsement from the European Commission or EUAA.

Flag Sort descending Country Year Type of development Thematic area Development Source
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2021 Institutional Country of origin information Country of origin information The Office for Country Information and Language Analysis (Team Onderzoek en Expertise Land en Taal (TOELT)) was divided into two departments, one employing the Country Specialists and Linguists (TOELT 01) and the other employing the Employees of the Regional Information Centres and the Coordinators Interpreters (TOELT 02). EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2021 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection Specific projects continued to address and manage more effectively disruptive behaviour in the reception system. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2020 Legislative The Dublin procedure The Dublin procedure The Aliens Circular was amended to reflect CJEU jurisprudence in Jawo and clarified when an applicant can be considered to have absconded. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2022 Policy Special procedures to assess protection needs Special procedures to assess protection needs The Unites States, Armenia and Trinidad and Tobago were re-assessed as safe countries of origin. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2022 Policy Content of protection Content of protection The Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) and United Work implemented a pilot project on employment for recognised beneficiaries of international protection in the Eindhoven region. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Policy Content of protection Content of protection Changes in the procedure to grant a residence permit for persons in a distressing situation were implemented (among others) with the abolishment of the discretionary power of the Minister for Migration and by mandating the Managing Director of the IND to consider ex officio within the first assessment of the application whether a distressing situation exists. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2020 Policy Return of former applicants Return of former applicants The IND published new work instructions providing guidelines to implement ECHR, Article 8. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2021 Policy Processing asylum applications at first instance Processing asylum applications at first instance The task force managing the asylum backlog was integrated into the IND. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2020 Policy Content of protection Content of protection The COA launched a pilot project in Utrecht for beneficiaries of international protection, where beneficiaries combine studying and apprenticeship in a 2-year programme to become COA employees. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2020 Legislative Return of former applicants Return of former applicants The Aliens Circular was amended and clarified that when a child is born after a parent has received a return decision, even though the child is subject to an independent return decision, the period of voluntary return is aligned to the parents' decision and expires at the same time. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2022 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection A new Education Budget Scheme for Asylum Seekers was introduced, allowing municipalities with emergency facilities to claim reimbursement for schooling costs. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Policy Content of protection Content of protection Municipalities in the Netherlands received an additional EUR 40 million for 2019 and 2020 to become more involved in the counselling of beneficiaries of international protection in their civic integration and language learning. The additional resources also aim to help municipalities orient themselves towards their directing role in the new civic integration system in order to promote a smooth transition to the new system. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Legislative Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Major changes were implemented for applicants in the Dublin procedure who claimed to be victims of human trafficking. This group of applicants will now only receive the special temporary residence permit for victims of human trafficking if their presence is considered to be essential for the investigation and prosecution of the case, and the Netherlands as a consequence only takes responsibility for their application if that is the case. NL LEG 05 2019
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2020 Policy Statelessness in the context of asylum Statelessness in the context of asylum The IND published new work instructions on Palestinians. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2021 Policy The Dublin procedure The Dublin procedure New work instructions were published on when and how a case officer should request advice from the Medical Advisory Office to assess an applicant’s aptitude to travel. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2021 Policy Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure As of 1 November 2021, the care of unaccompanied minors aged over 17.5 years was taken over by the COA and the minors were accommodated in regular reception places. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2020 Legislative Content of protection Content of protection The Alien Circular 2000 now explicitly states that the IND has to always include in the decision on family reunification all indicative statements and documents, and in some cases, further examination may be initiated. When a contradiction leads to no further investigation, this has to be motivated. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2022 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection The Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) updated its Multiannual Strategy 2020-2025, extending it with an additional year and re-prioritising the goals. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications An amendment to the Aliens Circular (Vc) established a new procedure regarding lodging and assessing subsequent asylum applications. NL LEG 03 2019
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2020 Policy Access to information Access to information The COA published a new brochure for employers Newcomers on their way to work - Guide for employers, providing information to facilitate the employment of beneficiaries of international protection. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2021 Policy Access to procedure icon Access to procedure The control boards (regietafel) moved to the next implementation phase and continued to ensure that all information is available on the specific individual cases, before they entered the phase of the regular procedure. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2021 Policy Content of protection Content of protection New work instructions were published on the examination of identity and family relations in family reunification procedures, including the use of DNA tests. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2020 Legislative Detention Detention during the asylum procedure An amendment to the Aliens Act established a clear legal basis for continuing the detention of a rejected applicant at the border during the appeal phase in the border procedure. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2022 Policy Processing asylum applications at first instance Processing asylum applications at first instance The Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) published revised work instructions for the assessment of applications from apostates and atheists. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection Applicants become entitled to non-emergency health care treatments after two months from registration. The differentiation on access to health care is not based on the reception location of stay anymore but only on the length of the applicant’s stay in the Netherlands. EASO Asylum Report 2020