Gov't to stop paying municipalities for sheltering rejected asylum seekers

The government will stop making money available for the shelter and guidance of asylum seekers who have exhausted all legal remedies. The five municipalities providing this National Aliens Facility (LVV) will stop receiving funding next year, the Volksrkant reports.

“Due to the increased costs of migration, choices have to be made,” the Ministry of Justice and Security, responsible for asylum, told the newspaper.

The decision is striking for several reasons. Firstly, the Rutte IV Cabinet said in its coalition agreement last year that it would expand this type of reception nationwide. The government is currently also very dependent on municipalities to arrange reception for asylum seekers - the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA)’s shelters are full, and many more asylum seekers are expected this year.

Rutger Groot Wassink, an alderman in Amsterdam and chairman of the asylum committee that the Association of Dutch Municipalities (VNG), called the decision “very strange.” According to him, the municipalities involved were unpleasantly surprised by the cancellation of the funding.

The LVV provides shelter for undocumented migrants and asylum seekers who have exhausted all legal remedies. It also guides their return to their country of origin, relocation to another country, or reapplication for a residency permit in the Netherlands if the situation has changed.

According to the municipalities that provide LVV, this type of reception helps maintain public order and safety, prevents people from ending up on the streets, and also improves the well-being of the people involved.

“The LVV is a kind of last resort in the asylum chain,” Groot Wassink said. “We are talking about hundreds of people. Should we put them on the street? That is highly undesirable.”