A couple of days ago, I mentioned that during this year, a total of 1 897 Bangladeshis, 1 445 Pakistanis, 1 120 Nigerians, 1 048 Turks, and 923 Iranians had submitted their first residence permit application to the Finnish Immigration Service.
These numbers are small compared to the figures from nearly ten years ago. In 2015, for instance, more than 20 000 Iraqis applied for international protection in Finland, and over 5 000 Afghans sought the same.
However, this does not mean that large numbers of people from developing countries are no longer trying to reach the EU. According to Verkkouutiset, the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) recorded a total of 513 000 asylum applications in the first half of this year alone, so the number of migrants in the Union is expected to exceed one million this year — just as it did last year.
This might indicate that the international "grapevine" has worked effectively, and asylum seekers are aware of the Finnish government's actions to more strictly target humanitarian immigration to those in genuine need.
Therefore, it is absolutely crucial that Prime Minister Petteri Orpo’s (National Coalition Party) government continues to effectively communicate and broadly publicize its immigration policy program. At the time of writing, two key sections of this program are in preparation and currently under review.
The first concerns family reunification, which is being amended to "tighten the requirements for family reunification by implementing the changes made possible by the family reunification directive". The second section relates to detention and entry bans, stating that "the regulations on detention will be tightened, the regulations concerning entry bans will be reformed, and it will be made possible to impose entry bans on individuals residing outside of Finland".
Just as important as making these changes is communicating them to people outside of Finland. This is the only way to minimize the motivation of migrants looking for high social services to head to this cold northern country.
It is also essential to highlight that the government program still includes further restrictions related to humanitarian asylum, such as limiting reception services and tightening the requirements for obtaining permanent residence. Additionally, it has already been decided that, starting in October, a longer residence period in Finland will be required to apply for Finnish citizenship.
However, it remains to be seen how, for example, the tightening of Germany's immigration policy will affect the number of migrants from developing countries coming to Finland. Will those from developing countries in search of a provider turn their eyes to Finland under the North Star, or will they head elsewhere? And if so, where?
Previous thoughts on the same topic:
Information for Asylum Seekers in Finland
Afghans Had to Go
Sweden's Gang Crime Recruits Children – Is It Time for the EU to Reevaluate Asylum Policies?
Maybe it's time for them to return to their homeland.
ReplyDeleteEurope does not need to be the social agency of the whole world and provide free life for them.
All the money what is spent on them - is taken away from the countries' own citizens and increases the tax burden. And think about why European countries are constantly in debt?
In reality, they can be called subsistence refugees - not as a asylum seekers.
In this regard, it would be important for the Dutch government to stick to its recent immigration policy decisions. Despite the fact that the EU is attempting to challenge them.
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