Ministers, local authorities reach deal on refugee housing, integration
9 years, 3 months ago

Ministers, local authorities reach deal on refugee housing, integration

Dutch News  

Ministers, provinces and local councils have reached agreement on providing ‘semi-permanent’ homes for 24,000 refugees with residency permits as well as 2,500 emergency places per province. The lack of social housing for registered refugees means action needs to be taken to provide alternative accommodation and free up space in the reception centres for new arrivals, ministers say. Social affairs minister Lodewijk Asscher is quoted by news agency ANP as saying that the Netherlands must learn the ‘lessons from the past’ and start the integration process sooner. Refugees with residency permits will start language lessons sooner and be screened to determine what sort of work they can do, Asscher said.

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History of this topic

Refugees face longer waits for housing, settlement agency warns
1 week, 5 days ago

Refugees face longer waits for housing, settlement agency warns

Dutch News  

Plans to stop giving refugees with residency permits priority for social housing will have “worrying consequences” as waiting times increase and they remain stuck in government-run centres, refugee settlement agency COA said on Friday. Housing minister Mona Keijzer said in February that she plans to stop councils giving priority to refugees, who are supposed to move into regular housing within …

EU Court limits Dutch fines for refugees failing integration exam
1 month, 3 weeks ago

EU Court limits Dutch fines for refugees failing integration exam

NL Times  

In most circumstances, the Dutch government is not permitted to financially penalize refugees with residency permits when they fail the national integration exam. It is predominantly not allowed to impose a fine on a status holder who has failed the integration exam, the Court of Justice of the European Union wrote in a ruling issued Tuesday. The Eritrean man in …

Zuid-Holland warns 8 municipalities: Arrange asylum shelter, or we'll do it for you
1 month, 3 weeks ago

Zuid-Holland warns 8 municipalities: Arrange asylum shelter, or we'll do it for you

NL Times  

The province of Zuid-Holland has given eight municipalities, including The Hague and Leiden, a warning that if they do not house enough refugees with a temporary residence permit, then the province will do it for them and charge them for it. The government decides every six months how many residency permit holders need to be given shelter. The Hague was …

Dutch offer Syrians €900 to return, in exchange for asylum claim
2 months ago

Dutch offer Syrians €900 to return, in exchange for asylum claim

Dutch News  

Syrian refugees in the Netherlands who want to return to Syria following the fall of dictator Bashar al-Assad are to receive €900 in cash and a ticket to Damascus if they give up their asylum claim, the justice ministry’s repatriation service DTenV has said on a designated website. The €900 cash return premium, meant to support returnees during the first …

Dutch cabinet backs three new laws to restrict refugee rights
3 months ago

Dutch cabinet backs three new laws to restrict refugee rights

Dutch News  

The Dutch cabinet has voted in favour of three draft pieces of legislation drawn up by immigration minister Marjolein Faber as part of her plans to bring in “the strictest asylum regime ever”. Faber told reporters on Friday she is fully confident that the council will accept her plans but said if the council is critical “my legal advisors and …

A shared home for refugees is "not basic enough" for minister
3 months, 1 week ago

A shared home for refugees is "not basic enough" for minister

Dutch News  

Asylum minister Marjolein Faber has rejected plans by Apeldoorn city council to provide accommodation for 50 refugees because it is “not basic enough”, local broadcaster Omroep Gelderland has reported. Faber plans to take responsibility for providing homes for refugees with residency permits away from local authorities and to set up large scale “basic” accommodation instead. Criticism Faber’s plans for the …

Combining work and "inburgering" is a struggle for refugees
3 months, 3 weeks ago

Combining work and "inburgering" is a struggle for refugees

Dutch News  

Refugees with residency permits in the Netherlands are finding it difficult to balance work with compulsory integration courses, and as a result, few have jobs in the years following their approval to stay, the Telegraaf reported on Thursday. The integration programme launched in 2021 was designed to help new arrivals combine compulsory language lessons with work. Refugees without jobs are …

1,000 religious leaders sign petition against Dutch asylum plans
4 months, 2 weeks ago

1,000 religious leaders sign petition against Dutch asylum plans

Dutch News  

More than 1,100 religious leaders in the Netherlands have signed a petition against the right-wing Dutch government’s “strictest refugee policy ever,” Trouw reported on Thursday. The plans, which include scrapping permanent residency permits, reintroducing border checks, and sending refugees back to “safe” parts of Syria, are “extremely concerning,” the signatories say. They also urge the government to show “justice and …

Refugees were allocated 6% of social housing in 2021
1 year, 2 months ago

Refugees were allocated 6% of social housing in 2021

Dutch News  

Despite claims that refugees with residency permits are being given priority in social housing, they accounted for just 6% of new rent-controlled housing corporation tenants in 2021, according to research by national statistics agency CBS. That year, 169,000 housing corporation homes became available for new tenants and just under 10,000 were allocated to refugee families, the CBS said. In Alkmaar, …

Rules to spread refugees nationwide come a step nearer
1 year, 5 months ago

Rules to spread refugees nationwide come a step nearer

Dutch News  

Controversial legislation to ensure all local authorities have to provide a certain number of beds for refugees will now pass in the lower house parliament because a majority of MPs are in favour. Research published by RTL Nieuws a year ago showed that more than half of Dutch local councils have not provided any housing for refugees in the past …

Rules to spread refugees nationwide come a step nearer
1 year, 5 months ago

Rules to spread refugees nationwide come a step nearer

Dutch News  

Controversial legislation to ensure all local authorities have to provide a certain number of beds for refugees will now pass in the lower house parliament because a majority of MPs are in favour. Research published by RTL Nieuws a year ago showed that more than half of Dutch local councils have not provided any housing for refugees in the past …

98% of accommodation spaces for Ukrainian refugees currently occupied
1 year, 7 months ago

98% of accommodation spaces for Ukrainian refugees currently occupied

NL Times  

Every week, approximately 700 to 1,000 Ukrainians fleeing from the war continue to arrive in the Netherlands. Jaap Donker, the director of the Utrecht Safety Region, who has been overseeing the accommodation of Ukrainians and the emergency sheltering of asylum seekers on behalf of all safety regions, stated that by January 1, 2024, 90,000 places should be available. In February, …

Netherlands needs 20,000 more shelter spots for Ukrainian refugees
2 years, 3 months ago

Netherlands needs 20,000 more shelter spots for Ukrainian refugees

NL Times  

The Dutch government believes that the number of Ukrainian refugees present in the Netherlands will continue to increase in the coming period. The Cabinet is considering having Ukrainians who earn an income help pay for their accommodation themselves, said State Secretary Eric van der Burg, who handles asylum issues for the Cabinet. Now that it looks like Ukrainian refugees will …

Dutch municipalities unsure how to handle a new influx of Ukrainian refugees this winter
2 years, 4 months ago

Dutch municipalities unsure how to handle a new influx of Ukrainian refugees this winter

NL Times  

The winter weather in Ukraine will continue to get colder in the coming week as the country struggles to make repairs after Russian attacks took out large portions of its energy infrastructure. Temperatures in Kyiv could fall below -8 degrees Celsius next week, prompting Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra to say the Netherlands will be ready to take more refugees …

Refugee numbers top 10,600 in Q3, led by Syrians and Afghans
2 years, 4 months ago

Refugee numbers top 10,600 in Q3, led by Syrians and Afghans

Dutch News  

Over 10,600 people made a first request for asylum status in the Netherlands in the third quarter of this year, according to figures from the immigration service IND. The largest group – 4,600 – came from Syria, followed by nearly 1,000 people from Afghanistan and 935 from Turkey, national statistics agency CBS said, citing figures sourced from the IND. More …

Minister appeals again for councils to house young refugees
2 years, 5 months ago

Minister appeals again for councils to house young refugees

Dutch News  

Junior justice minister Eric van der Burg has made yet another urgent appeal to local councils to come up with beds for refugees – this time for 1,700 places for youngsters who have travelled to the Netherlands without their parents. ‘I would ask you all, as a matter of real urgency, to prevent us reaching an absolute low point,’ Van …

Minister appeals again for councils to house young refugees
2 years, 5 months ago

Minister appeals again for councils to house young refugees

Dutch News  

Junior justice minister Eric van der Burg has made yet another urgent appeal to local councils to come up with beds for refugees – this time for 1,700 places for youngsters who have travelled to the Netherlands without their parents. ‘I would ask you all, as a matter of real urgency, to prevent us reaching an absolute low point,’ Van …

Despite the crisis, the number of beds for refugees has gone down
2 years, 5 months ago

Despite the crisis, the number of beds for refugees has gone down

Dutch News  

The number of beds for asylum seekers has actually fallen, despite government efforts to get local authorities to allocate more places, junior justice minister Eric van der Burg said at the weekend. Many contracts for emergency accommodation between councils and refugee settlement agency COA expired at the end of September and the net reduction in beds is around 1,250, Van …

Despite the crisis, the number of beds for refugees has gone down
2 years, 5 months ago

Despite the crisis, the number of beds for refugees has gone down

Dutch News  

The number of beds for asylum seekers has actually fallen, despite government efforts to get local authorities to allocate more places, junior justice minister Eric van der Burg said at the weekend. Many contracts for emergency accommodation between councils and refugee settlement agency COA expired at the end of September and the net reduction in beds is around 1,250, Van …

Ministers intervene, earmark two locations for refugee housing
2 years, 7 months ago

Ministers intervene, earmark two locations for refugee housing

Dutch News  

Ministers have confirmed that they will start forcing local authorities to accept refugees if they persistently refuse to change zoning plans to allow suitable buildings to be used as temporary housing. The state would rather not go so far, but will use the legal instruments at their disposal to bypass local officials if necessary, housing minister Hugo de Jonge and …

Ministers intervene, earmark two locations for refugee housing
2 years, 7 months ago

Ministers intervene, earmark two locations for refugee housing

Dutch News  

Ministers have confirmed that they will start forcing local authorities to accept refugees if they persistently refuse to change zoning plans to allow suitable buildings to be used as temporary housing. The state would rather not go so far, but will use the legal instruments at their disposal to bypass local officials if necessary, housing minister Hugo de Jonge and …

Cabinet preparing to shelter up to 150,000 Ukrainian refugees
2 years, 11 months ago

Cabinet preparing to shelter up to 150,000 Ukrainian refugees

NL Times  

The Dutch government expects 100,000 to 150,000 Ukrainians to seek shelter in the Netherlands. You don't know what Putin is going to do," said Migration policy director Bart-Jan ter Heerdt in parliament, referring to the Russian president responsible for the invasion of Ukraine. Ter Heerdt stressed the uncertainty in answering parliamentary questions about the scenarios the Justice Ministry is preparing …

Dutch step up preparations for Ukrainian refugees
2 years, 11 months ago

Dutch step up preparations for Ukrainian refugees

Dutch News  

The government has invoked national crisis legislation to force local authorities to organise accommodation for Ukrainian refugees by Friday. Local mayors must also ensure that they register the newcomers and provide them with money to live on, education and healthcare, junior justice minister Eric van der Burg said after Wednesday’s cabinet meeting to discuss the war in Ukraine. ‘In practice …

Dutch step up preparations for Ukrainian refugees
2 years, 11 months ago

Dutch step up preparations for Ukrainian refugees

Dutch News  

The government has invoked national crisis legislation to force local authorities to organise accommodation for Ukrainian refugees by Friday. Local mayors must also ensure that they register the newcomers and provide them with money to live on, education and healthcare, junior justice minister Eric van der Burg said after Wednesday’s cabinet meeting to discuss the war in Ukraine. ‘In practice …

Dutch Cabinet to shelter 15,000 refugees in government buildings
3 years ago

Dutch Cabinet to shelter 15,000 refugees in government buildings

NL Times  

The Cabinet is going to make buildings owned by the central government’s real estate agency available for the reception of refugees. This means that 15,000 places can be created, said Public Housing Minister Hugo de Jonge after the weekly meeting of Cabinet ministers on Friday. The 15,000 places will be made available to municipalities, which arrange the reception of Ukrainians, …

Dutch launch English website for Ukrainian refugees in NL
3 years ago

Dutch launch English website for Ukrainian refugees in NL

Dutch News  

Dutch refugee organisation Vluchtelingenwerk Nederland and the Red Cross have launched an English-language website gathering together information for Ukrainian nationals who have fled the war and come to the Netherlands. Thousands open their homes to Ukrainian refugees Some 8,000 Ukrainian nationals have arrived in the Netherlands so far but the government expects at least 50,000 people, mainly women and children, …

Dutch launch English website for Ukrainian refugees in NL
3 years ago

Dutch launch English website for Ukrainian refugees in NL

Dutch News  

Dutch refugee organisation Vluchtelingenwerk Nederland and the Red Cross have launched an English-language website gathering together information for Ukrainian nationals who have fled the war and come to the Netherlands. Thousands open their homes to Ukrainian refugees Some 8,000 Ukrainian nationals have arrived in the Netherlands so far but the government expects at least 50,000 people, mainly women and children, …

Dutch set up crisis team to deal with refugees from Ukraine
3 years ago

Dutch set up crisis team to deal with refugees from Ukraine

Dutch News  

The Dutch cabinet is setting up a crisis team to cope with the expected large number of refugees from Ukraine, prime minister Mark Rutte said in a short statement on Tuesday. No one can estimate how many refugees are heading for the Netherlands, but ‘we have to be well prepared’, the prime minister told reporters. Their primary concern will be …

Dutch set up crisis team to deal with refugees from Ukraine
3 years ago

Dutch set up crisis team to deal with refugees from Ukraine

Dutch News  

The Dutch cabinet is setting up a crisis team to cope with the expected large number of refugees from Ukraine, prime minister Mark Rutte said in a short statement on Tuesday. No one can estimate how many refugees are heading for the Netherlands, but ‘we have to be well prepared’, the prime minister told reporters. Their primary concern will be …

Minister admits there was no legal basis for refugee housing demand
3 years, 2 months ago

Minister admits there was no legal basis for refugee housing demand

Dutch News  

Former junior justice minister Ankie Broekers-Knol has admitted she had no legal powers to force several local authorities to set up emergency accommodation for refugees. Broekers-Knol told five local councils in mid December they had no choice but to take in refugees, but now says there was no legal basis for the decision. The decision, she said in briefing to …

Minister admits there was no legal basis for refugee housing demand
3 years, 2 months ago

Minister admits there was no legal basis for refugee housing demand

Dutch News  

Former junior justice minister Ankie Broekers-Knol has admitted she had no legal powers to force several local authorities to set up emergency accommodation for refugees. Broekers-Knol told five local councils in mid December they had no choice but to take in refugees, but now says there was no legal basis for the decision. The decision, she said in briefing to …

Minister chooses five locations for emergency refugee centres
3 years, 3 months ago

Minister chooses five locations for emergency refugee centres

Dutch News  

Five emergency asylum accommodation centres have been set up to house people currently living in tents and dormitories as the system struggles to cope with demand. Junior justice minister Ankie Broekers-Knol said the locations in Venray, Alkmaar, Rotterdam, Gorinchem and Enschede were chosen because they are available and spread the burden around the country. The nationwide housing shortage has also …

Refugee advocates: Emergency asylum shelters fail to meet standards
3 years, 3 months ago

Refugee advocates: Emergency asylum shelters fail to meet standards

NL Times  

The way in which refugees and asylum seekers are housed by the Netherlands in emergency reception locations is seriously lacking, according to VluchtelingenWerk, known in English as the Dutch Council for Refugees. The conclusions are the result of a study into the living conditions of 5,000 asylum seekers at 21 emergency reception locations, the Council says. Unlike the Dutch Council …

Tents not suitable for refugees in winter, ombudsman tells minister
3 years, 4 months ago

Tents not suitable for refugees in winter, ombudsman tells minister

Dutch News  

The emergency refugee centre in Heumensoord in Gelderland is unsuitable for use in the winter months and proper accommodation must be found for the occupants as a matter of urgency, the national ombudsman and the Dutch human rights committee say. The two organisations have written to junior justice minister Ankie Broekers-Knol urging her to come up with a permanent solution …

Large Dutch cities worried about refugees stuck in old naturalization system
3 years, 4 months ago

Large Dutch cities worried about refugees stuck in old naturalization system

NL Times  

Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam, and The Hague are very concerned about a group of at least 11,000 refugees who will have to integrate in the coming years. A new integration system will be implemented on January 1, but everyone who got a residency permit before that date will have to integrate in the old, failing system. The old integration system was …

Safety boards agree to act on housing for refugees as crisis deepens
3 years, 5 months ago

Safety boards agree to act on housing for refugees as crisis deepens

Dutch News  

The Netherlands 25 regional safety boards have agreed to find an extra 800 beds to cope with the rising number of asylum seekers needing accommodation, Nijmegen mayor and board chairman Hubert Bruls has said. On Monday, justice minister Ferd Grapperhaus made an urgent appeal for help in finding places for people to live – particularly young refugees who are in …

Safety boards agree to act on housing for refugees as crisis deepens
3 years, 5 months ago

Safety boards agree to act on housing for refugees as crisis deepens

Dutch News  

The Netherlands 25 regional safety boards have agreed to find an extra 800 beds to cope with the rising number of asylum seekers needing accommodation, Nijmegen mayor and board chairman Hubert Bruls has said. On Monday, justice minister Ferd Grapperhaus made an urgent appeal for help in finding places for people to live – particularly young refugees who are in …

Refugee centres are full, thousands of emergency beds are needed
3 years, 5 months ago

Refugee centres are full, thousands of emergency beds are needed

Dutch News  

Asylum seekers centres in the Netherlands are full and several thousand emergency beds will be needed to meet demand, refugee settlement agency COA has confirmed. The 30,000 places in refugee centres are all taken and this means sports halls and other large buildings need to be converted into temporary accommodation to deal with new arrivals, COA said. Some 11,000 beds …

Refugee centres are full, thousands of emergency beds are needed
3 years, 5 months ago

Refugee centres are full, thousands of emergency beds are needed

Dutch News  

Asylum seekers centres in the Netherlands are full and several thousand emergency beds will be needed to meet demand, refugee settlement agency COA has confirmed. The 30,000 places in refugee centres are all taken and this means sports halls and other large buildings need to be converted into temporary accommodation to deal with new arrivals, COA said. Some 11,000 beds …

New language requirement making Dutch citizenship unattainable: Refugee organization
4 years, 4 months ago

New language requirement making Dutch citizenship unattainable: Refugee organization

NL Times  

The government's new language requirements will make Dutch citizenship unattainable for between 50 thousand and 100 thousand refugees in the country, according to refugee organization Vlucthelingenwerk Nederland. The increased language requirement has a "discriminatory effect" that will result in a group of "second class citizens", the organization said to RTL Nieuws. The government now wants to increase the language requirement …

Vast majority of Dutch willing to shelter war refugees
4 years, 9 months ago

Vast majority of Dutch willing to shelter war refugees

NL Times  

Eight in ten Netherlands residents believe that the country should offer shelter and protection to people who are feeling from war or persecution, according to a study by research agency Ipsos for World Refugee Day among 26 countries. A majority of Dutch, 56 percent, think asylum seekers flee to the Netherlands for economic reasons. When asked about the coronavirus crisis …

More Syrian refugees have paid work, and speak better Dutch
4 years, 9 months ago

More Syrian refugees have paid work, and speak better Dutch

Dutch News  

Syrian refugees are becoming more integrated into the Netherlands and are more likely to have a paid job and to speak Dutch than they were two years ago, according to new research by the government’s socio-cultural think-tank SCP. In 2017, just 11% of Syrian refugees with a residence permit had a paid job, but this has now gone up to …

More Syrian refugees have paid work, and speak better Dutch
4 years, 9 months ago

More Syrian refugees have paid work, and speak better Dutch

Dutch News  

Syrian refugees are becoming more integrated into the Netherlands and are more likely to have a paid job and to speak Dutch than they were two years ago, according to new research by the government’s socio-cultural think-tank SCP. In 2017, just 11% of Syrian refugees with a residence permit had a paid job, but this has now gone up to …

New asylum seekers will be put up in tents, justice ministry officials say
5 years ago

New asylum seekers will be put up in tents, justice ministry officials say

Dutch News  

There will be emergency accommodation for asylum seekers arriving in the Netherlands after all but the Ter Apel reception centre in Groningen will remain closed to new arrivals, justice ministry officials say. On Sunday, the ministry said that new refugees arriving in the Netherlands will not be admitted to official residential centres from Monday because of the coronavirus threat. Junior …

Despite the fall in refugee numbers, more beds are still needed
5 years, 1 month ago

Despite the fall in refugee numbers, more beds are still needed

Dutch News  

The Dutch refugee settlement agency COA needs 1,800 extra beds for new arrivals because the regular refugee centres are full, junior justice minister Ankie Broekers-Knol has told MPs. Some 9,000 new arrivals are still waiting to start their application for refugee status, broadcaster NOS quoted the agency as saying. Of the total, 4,200 people arrived to join close relatives who …

Despite the fall in refugee numbers, more beds are still needed
5 years, 1 month ago

Despite the fall in refugee numbers, more beds are still needed

Dutch News  

The Dutch refugee settlement agency COA needs 1,800 extra beds for new arrivals because the regular refugee centres are full, junior justice minister Ankie Broekers-Knol has told MPs. Some 9,000 new arrivals are still waiting to start their application for refugee status, broadcaster NOS quoted the agency as saying. Of the total, 4,200 people arrived to join close relatives who …

More asylum seekers come to the Netherlands, refugee centres are full
5 years, 5 months ago

More asylum seekers come to the Netherlands, refugee centres are full

Dutch News  

The number of refugees and their families coming to the Netherlands rose to 1,400 in the third quarter of the year, up around 400 on the April to June period, according to new figures from national statistics agency CBS. In total 5,900 asylum seekers came to the Netherlands between July and September, a rise of 700 on the previous quarter …

More asylum seekers come to the Netherlands, refugee centres are full
5 years, 5 months ago

More asylum seekers come to the Netherlands, refugee centres are full

Dutch News  

The number of refugees and their families coming to the Netherlands rose to 1,400 in the third quarter of the year, up around 400 on the April to June period, according to new figures from national statistics agency CBS. In total 5,900 asylum seekers came to the Netherlands between July and September, a rise of 700 on the previous quarter …

Refugees need more support to find work, learn Dutch: SER
5 years, 10 months ago

Refugees need more support to find work, learn Dutch: SER

Dutch News  

Refugees with residency permits should be given far more support in finding work, the government’s most important advisory body says in a new report. ‘Yet there is a major shortage of people for the jobs currently on offer,’ SER chairwoman Mariette Hamer said in an interview with broadcaster NOS. ‘Refugees should be able to work more quickly.’ One problem identified …

Refugees need more support to find work, learn Dutch: SER
5 years, 10 months ago

Refugees need more support to find work, learn Dutch: SER

Dutch News  

Refugees with residency permits should be given far more support in finding work, the government’s most important advisory body says in a new report. ‘Yet there is a major shortage of people for the jobs currently on offer,’ SER chairwoman Mariette Hamer said in an interview with broadcaster NOS. ‘Refugees should be able to work more quickly.’ One problem identified …

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