Dutch municipalities face shortfall of 20,000 asylum beds two years after dispersal law
The Netherlands continues to face a shortfall in asylum reception capacity, two years after the dispersal law was introduced. As of late January 2026, roughly 80,000 asylum beds were available nationwide, far below the target of nearly 103,000. Only four in ten municipalities currently meet the law’s requirements, according to figures obtained by NRC from the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA).
Out of 342 municipalities, 196 provide too few reception places, and more than 100 have none at all. Provincially, only Groningen, Friesland, Drenthe, and Flevoland have sufficient capacity—but these provinces already met the requirement before the law took effect.
The dispersal law, enacted in January 2024 after a summer in which asylum seekers were forced to sleep outside the Ter Apel registration center, was designed to expand and better distribute reception facilities across the country.
Despite the creation of roughly 13,000 additional places and improved regional distribution since 2024, growth has slowed. “The past two years, some municipalities have been very proactive,” said Mark Boumans, mayor of Doetinchem and chairman of the asylum committee of the Association of Dutch Municipalities (VNG). “But there are also municipalities where the asylum plans are mostly still a paper exercise. They have applied the brakes after last year’s turmoil.”
The slowdown has been linked to municipal elections and local protests. Several municipalities postponed or withdrew plans to open asylum centers. In Raalte, for example, the municipal council suspended plans in June, one week after the national cabinet fell. “We do not want the reception center to polarize our residents. That could also affect voting behavior,” said Alderman Gerria Toeter. “The new council will still have to approve the zoning permit for the center.”
Protests, intimidation, and threats against local politicians and their families have escalated over the past year. Boumans said, “I have been in local politics since 1995. I cannot remember mass protests against municipal decision-making like this. Everywhere I go, people talk about the protests, the violence, the intimidation, and the impact on local politicians and their families.” In Terneuzen, a CDA councilor refrained from voting on an asylum center due to “heavy pressure.”
Temporary shelters account for roughly half of the current 80,000 asylum beds. While around 6,000 durable places will be added this year, COA expects the shortage to grow because more temporary shelters are closing than opening.
In February, the law enters its second cycle. Caretaker Minister Mona Keijzer (BBB), responsible for the dispersal law, will set a new target for asylum reception places and distribute it across provinces based on population and socioeconomic factors. Municipalities must submit plans by October 31, after which the minister may intervene if provinces do not have complete plans. All facilities must be ready by July 1, 2027, or the minister can require municipalities to open centers.
The new target is reportedly likely lower than the initial 103,000 places. In September, COA estimated 88,000 places would be needed by January 1, 2027. It remains unclear how the government’s new distribution will align with last year’s allocation decisions by former Minister Marjolein Faber (PVV).
The new coalition, formed at the end of January 2026 by D66, VVD, and CDA, has pledged to maintain the dispersal law, citing the need for “a fair distribution across municipalities.”
