2 weeks Ago By Gordon Darroch
Asylum minister Marjolein Faber’s plans for the “strictest asylum regime ever” will trigger a wave of legal challenges, placing further strain on an overburdened legal system, the Council of State has warned. In a highly critical assessment, the constitutional advisory body said it had “serious concerns” about proposals such as abolishing permanent residency for refugees and creating a two-tier asylum system. The measures are designed to control migration by deterring asylum seekers from coming to the Netherlands and making it easier to send refugees back when the situation in their countries of origin improves.
But the Council of State said it would create extra work for both the courts and the immigration service IND, who are already “overburdened and dealing with staff shortages,” the chair of the administrative justice panel wrote. The judicial council (Raad voor de rechtspraak) also said it had “serious objections” to the PVV minister’s plans, particularly the idea for a two-tier asylum system. Refugees fleeing persecution on individual grounds, such as their sexuality or political activity, would be entitled to more protection than those who claimed asylum because of a war or political upheaval in their country.
Two-tier appeals The council said that large numbers of people in the lower category were likely to go to court to demand an “upgrade”. The Netherlands abolished an earlier two-tier system in 2000, partly because nearly 50% of lower-tier refugees appealed against their status. The abolition of permanent residency would also lead to more work for the courts and the IND because every asylum seeker’s permit would have to be reviewed every three years, increasing the backlog in cases.
Henk Naves, chair of the judicial council, also criticised the short deadlines set by Faber’s ministry to scrutinise the legislation. “We’ve been given a week to deliver our advice while usually it’s a period of at least eight weeks,” he said. “What it means in practice is the IND will be overburdened and there will be far more cases brought to the courts and the Council of State.
I don’t think that’s what the government wants, because it’s trying to speed up the system.” European deal The new asylum laws will coincide with the European migration pact , which comes into force in 2026 and will also have to be implemented by the courts and IND. It could lead to more legal challenges if the two sets of rules clash on issues such as family reunion, which the Dutch government wants to restrict while the EU says siblings should have the right to live with their families.
Faber defended her plans, saying the coalition agreement spelled out the need to act quickly to reduce the number of asylum seekers. “If we do nothing the courts will also be overflowing, because the influx of migration will continue,” she told Nieuwsuur . “This is about getting control of migration, and of course that makes demands of the courts and the IND, but I think we can solve it together.
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