Asylum seeker

Definition/short description

An Asylum seeker is a person of any age who migrates from his or her own country to find a safe haven in another country. This is usually done by applying to the government of the new country for protection as a refugee. The person in situation must be able to convince that he or she is not safe or feels threatened and therefore, is not able to obtain protection or assistance from his or her own national authorities. A person becomes a refugee if the asylum application is successful.

In depth

Asylum seekers are displaced persons who move across borders in search of safety and have fled their country under conditions of forced migration. These are due to various factors such as: race, religion, nationality, political opinion, membership in social groups. Asylum seekers can become refugees if the local immigration or refugee authority consider them as fitting the international definition of a refugee. Many asylum seekers go from one European country to another before they apply for asylum. The European Union has been trying to unify its asylum process but there are still differences in the kind of reception that an asylum seeker can expect. The reasons for going to a particular country are numerous and vary from money to language, cultural links and sometimes, the time it takes for an application to be processed. According to the norms and values of UNHCR (United Nations High commissioner For Refugees)and most of the host countries which have participated with the UNCHR for accepting the refugees, an asylum seeker must prove and provide sufficient evidence to the country that he or she initially arrived in order to receive the refugee status. There may still be the possibility for him/her to be deported to the country of origin if there is a failure in providing the relevant information about the problems which determined him or her to abscond the native land. In 2000, just under 400,000 asylum seekers filed in applications for asylum in 15 EU countries. The biggest groups came from Yugoslavia, Iraq, Afghanistan and Iran; all countries with civil war backgrounds.

The relevance of Asylum_seeker for Migration and/or Migration Policy

As described that migration is the movement of people from one place to another with the intention of settling down permanently, asylum seekers are not the exceptions to this concept. Asylum seekers play a significant role in Asylum policy and migration. An asylum seeker can migrate from one country to another depending on which country accepts him or her to stay and become a legal migrant or apply for the naturalization process.

Push factor and Asylum Seeker in Migration

In this phase of migration, people are leaving their country of origin as a result of different reasons related to Migration push factors

• Political Aspect

People are forced to leave their country because they are in political conflict with the leaders of their native country.

• Environmental Aspect

People migrating to another country because they were victims of natural disasters.

• Ethnical Aspect

People that are forced to move regarding their ethnic status.

Examples

Example: Asylum seekers in the Netherlands The Netherlands used to be quite generous in comparison to other EU countries in its treatment of asylum seekers but only recently introduced stricter measures. Asylum seekers arriving in the Netherlands through another EU state are not entitled to accommodation in reception centres. Facts: There were 43,890 applications of asylum seekers in 2000. In 1999, the percentage of recognition of asylum seekers was 15.6%. Asylum seekers receive a one-off allowance. All asylum seekers are placed in reception centres where they stay for the first three months before being housed in residence centres or boarding houses. Asylum seekers are offered a general medical check-up on arrival. Asylum seekers are allowed to work 12 weeks a year.

Example: Asylum seekers in France The French government is trying to do their best to find accommodation for all asylum seekers that arrive in the country each year. It takes about six months for an asylum seeker to be allocated in a reception centre. To qualify for a temporary residence permit, asylum seekers need to make an appointment with the local authorities, for which there is a four months waiting list. Facts: There were 38,590 applications of asylum seekers in 2000. In 1991, the percentage of recognition of asylum seekers was 19.3%. Asylum seekers without friends or family in France usually have to struggle alone untill they can go to the reception centres. Asylum seekers receive a one-off allowance. There is a mandatory medical test for asylum seekers. Asylum seekers have no access to the labour market.

Sources, further reading, links

• France International News 24/7
• Immigration and Naturalization Office in the Netherlands
• BBC News
• UNHCR
• David J. Whittaker, Asylum Seekers And Refugees In The Contemporary World, ISBN 0-415-36091-9

Related Educational Pages

• IPMProject1