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Op 11-12 mei 2025 bezocht de Belgische Minister voor Asiel en Migratie Anneleen Van Bossuyt Chisinau om te benadrukken dat verzoeken om internationale bescherming van Moldavische staatsburgers—afkomstig uit een land dat als veilig wordt beschouwd—in België via een versnelde procedure worden verwerkt. Ze kondigde ook de onmiddellijke stopzetting van de terugkeerpremie aan, die door het kabinet wordt gezien als een stimulans voor misbruik van het asielsysteem.

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The European Commission has approved an additional €3 billion in funding to assist Member States in implementing the Pact on Migration and Asylum and to support the hosting of beneficiaries of temporary protection from Ukraine. This amount is composed of €1.8 billion from the revision of the current Multiannual Financial Framework and a €1.2 billion top-up to the Asylum Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) and the Border Management and Visa Instrument (BMVI).

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Tijdens een lunch-and-learn sessie ontmoette het EMN België-team ongeveer 30 medewerkers van Fedasil om het werk van het Europese Migratienetwerk voor te stellen, actieve deelname aan het EMN netwerk aan te moedigen en updates te geven over recente en aankomende publicaties en activiteiten.
Hoofdthema: Opvang

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On 23 April 2025, the Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons (CGRS) announced an extension of the suspension of the processing of applications for international protection from Syrian nationals. The suspension, initially introduced on 9 December 2024, will remain in place until at least the end of July 2025.

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The European Commission has issued a proposal to accelerate the implementation of certain aspects of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, with the aim of helping Member States process asylum claims more quickly, particularly for applicants whose claims are likely to be unfounded. In addition, the proposal includes the establishment of an EU-wide list of safe countries of origin. Human rights organisations have raised concerns, especially about the inclusion of Egypt, Tunisia, and Morocco, which they argue have ongoing human rights issues.

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Recent data requested by Green party MP Matti Vandemaele from the Minister for Asylum and Migration, Anneleen Van Bossuyt (N-VA), indicate a notable increase in the time taken to process applications for international protection. This trend has implications for applicants, who remain in prolonged uncertainty, and for the national reception system, which continues to face significant pressure.

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In a judgment issued on 11 April 2025, the District Court of The Hague, sitting in Groningen, found that single, non-vulnerable male asylum seekers face a real risk of being deprived of adequate reception facilities in Belgium, which could lead to inhumane or degrading treatment. This ruling follows previous decisions by Dutch judges who determined that Dublin transfers to Belgium could not be carried out due to insufficient guarantees of proper accommodation.

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De conferentie zal de toekomst van Oekraïense ontheemden na tijdelijke bescherming verkennen en beleidsmakers, experts en belanghebbenden samenbrengen om strategieën voor beleidsovergangen en integratie-uitdagingen met betrekking tot werkgelegenheid te bespreken, best practices te delen en de rol van de diaspora te onderzoeken bij het ondersteunen van langdurige oplossingen.

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Last year, Fedasil’s mobile and multilingual Reach Out team provided information to 1.702 migrants in precarious situations in Brussels and Flanders. Representing more than 75 nationalities, these individuals received counselling on a wide range of topics, from international protection and reception to healthcare, employment, and voluntary return.

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In een nieuw rapport dringt Amnesty International er bij de Belgische regering op aan om ervoor te zorgen dat alle asielzoekers adequate huisvesting en toegang tot gezondheidszorg krijgen, inclusief gespecialiseerde psychologische ondersteuning, ongeacht hun huisvestingssituatie. De Belgische autoriteiten worden ook opgeroepen om het "spreidingsplan" uit de nationale wetgeving te activeren en noodplannen te implementeren om schommelingen in het aantal asielaanvragen op te vangen.

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On 25 March 2025, the Belgian Contact Point to the European Migration Network (EMN) participated in a study morning dedicated to the presentation of a new tool: "The Reception Centre as Seen by Children." The new tool provides practical methods for capturing children's experiences, enabling professionals to better understand their needs and enhance the quality of care in these centres.  

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The Belgian Minister of Asylum and Migration, Anneleen Van Bossuyt, has launched dissuasion campaigns on YouTube and via a WhatsApp channel that directly disseminates deterrence messages to potential asylum seekers. Several organisations have reacted to these campaigns, particularly criticising the messages conveyed by them.

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The Minister for Asylum and Migration has decided to discontinue the Impuls Fund, which had been established to provide additional support to local authorities in covering the extra costs associated with opening new Local Reception Initiatives. The Minister will now move towards a more collective approach to reception, with existing Local Reception Initiatives being gradually phased out.   

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In their report 2024, seven humanitarian and civil society organisations raise concerns over the Belgian government's plan to reduce reception places for applicants for international protection, warning that this measure could increase homelessness, negatively impact individuals' health and integration prospects, and generate significant hidden costs for society.
Hoofdthema: Reception
Trefwoorden: reception crisis, homelessness

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In the note submitted to the Chamber of Representatives, Minister Anneleen Van Bossuyt described the current situation as operationally, financially, and socially untenable. She announced her intention to urgently submit, as an initial step, a package of crisis measures to address the ongoing asylum and reception crisis. Additionally, she outlined a broader range of measures covering key aspects, including asylum and reception, migration, the protection of vulnerable groups, return and security, the social welfare system, and access to Belgian nationality.

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On 12 March 2025, the Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons (CGRS) announced that it would temporarily suspend the notification of decisions granting subsidiary protection, refusing refugee status and refusing subsidiary protection status from applicants from the West Bank until they have access to sufficient objective information to accurately assess the general situation in the West Bank.

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The European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) has released its annual analysis of asylum trends in 2024. The EU+ received approximately 1.014 million asylum applications, reflecting an 11% decrease compared to 2023. This decrease concentrated in the second half of the year as the application trend deviated from the typical seasonal pattern.

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Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Belgium has granted temporary protection to 93.343 Ukrainians, with a sharp decline beginning in 2023 and continuing into 2024 and early 2025. As the number of arrivals has slowed and the focus shifts to integration efforts, both the Flemish and Walloon governments plan to gradually reduce reception capacity for beneficiaries of temporary protection in the coming months.

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Een recent rapport van het Asielagentschap van de Europese Unie (EUAA), dat jurisprudentie van 2020-2024 analyseert, benadrukt dat beslissingen van EU- en nationale rechtbanken nationale praktijken sturen naar een meer gendergevoelige benadering van internationale bescherming.  

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Fedasil revealed that Belgium resettled 487 people in 2024, exceeding the 287 resettled in 2023. The refugees resettled in 2024 mainly came from countries such as Syria, Congo, Eritrea and Sudan.
Hoofdthema: Reception
Trefwoorden: resettlement, resettled refugee

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On 16 January 2025, the Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons (CGRS) released asylum statistics for the whole year 2024. According to the figures, 39.615 persons, mainly from Palestine, Syria, Afghanistan, Eritrea and Turkey, applied for international protection in Belgium. The Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration stressed that a large number of these applicants were already registered in another Member State.

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Terwijl België blijft kampen met een opvangcrisis die sinds de zomer van 2021 aanhoudt, blijkt uit de laatste cijfers van Fedasil dat het aantal plaatsen voor asielzoekers dar door gemeenten beschikbaar wordt gesteld, blijft afnemen.

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From 1 January 2025 until 31 December 2026, the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) will support Belgium to increase the capacities of the national asylum and reception authorities. Asylum support teams will be deployed to support the registration and processing of cases as well as the design, update and implementation of specific systems and tools. 

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As of 9 December 2024, the Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons will temporarily suspend processing cases of applicants originating from Syria. Planned personal interviews will be cancelled and assessments will be temporarily put on hold.

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On the occasion of International Volunteer Day, Fedasil highlights the importance of volunteers who give their time to residents in reception centres and of sponsors who create links with these residents outside of the centres. If you have free time, join them and contact a reception centre in your neighbourhood!
Hoofdthema: Reception
Trefwoorden: reception centre, volunteer