It concerns a group of 4,900 so-called third-country nationals from Ukraine. These are refugees who had a temporary residence permit when they stayed in Ukraine, for example students.
When Russia invaded Ukraine, this group of Ukrainian refugees was also housed in the municipal shelter. But in July already private that the third-country nationals must enter the regular asylum process and are therefore no longer allowed to go to the municipal reception. On 4 March, third-country nationals who are still in the municipal shelter will no longer be allowed to stay here.
That’s just over five weeks away. But there is still “no concrete plan” where these people should go, writes the VNG. “This means that municipalities have not been able to make any preparations, the target group is in uncertainty and that there is a very high risk that this will have a significant impact on asylum reception in the Netherlands and specifically on the COA (Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers, ed.). “
There is also no room at ‘ordinary’ reception locations
Because the longer it takes before there is a plan, the greater the chance that these third-country nationals will also have to apply for asylum. That would mean that 4,900 Ukrainians would suddenly apply for asylum on March 4, while the Dutch asylum system is already overloaded.
The municipalities write that it is also not an option to keep third-country nationals in municipal shelters. The places are badly needed to receive other Ukrainians, because the municipal shelter is also starting to fill up.
The municipalities say they feel left out in the cold by the government. “Understanding for this unnecessarily created situation among municipalities is increasingly crumbling.” They want State Secretary Van der Burg to come up with a concrete plan. Or that a possible postponement of the deadline is being considered.
The Dutch Council for Refugees is also concerned about the other rules that third-country nationals will soon have to deal with. “We have recently informed them about their choices for the future. But we do not have an answer to the most important question: where will they be taken care of after March 4?”, a spokesperson says to ANP.
