(NETHERLANDS) The Netherlands is processing far fewer asylum seekers this year while pushing through tough new rules that would reshape who gets protection and what rights follow. By August 2025, the country recorded 2,130 first-time asylum applications, well below the October 2023 peak of 5,120 and near the 2025 low of 1,435 seen in March. In the first quarter of 2025, nearly 4,500 people filed a first-time asylum claim, about half the level from the same period in 2024.
Yet even as new arrivals fall, the backlog has swollen past 50,000 open cases, leaving many people waiting far beyond the legal decision limit of 21 months.
Why applications are falling — and policy’s role
Ministers say the drop reflects tighter border controls across Europe and changes in conditions in some countries of origin.
According to analysis by VisaVerge.com, the pace of new claims in the Netherlands has also been influenced by domestic policy choices that discourage people from applying or slow the path to status. Those choices now include two headline bills approved by the lower house in July 2025: the Two Status System Act and the Asylum Emergency Measures Act.
- The cabinet also declared an “asylum crisis”, unlocking temporary steps without full parliamentary sign-off. These can include:
- A short-term halt to new asylum filings
- Reduced reception standards
- A pause on the automatic grant of permanent residence after five years
- Even long-term residents could be asked to return if their country is later judged safe
Key features of the two new bills
Two Status System Act
Under the Two Status System Act, protection would be split into two tracks:
- Refugees fleeing persecution (political, religious, or similar grounds)
- People escaping war or disasters
Each track would carry different rights, with the second track offering reduced entitlements compared with conventional refugee status.
Asylum Emergency Measures Act
This law would:
- Criminalize being undocumented and criminalize helping undocumented migrants
- Expand controls and allow forced removals
- Enable temporary, rapid measures under the declared asylum crisis
The cabinet and leaders, led by the far-right Party for Freedom (PVV), call the package the “strictest refugee regime ever”, arguing it is necessary to relieve pressure on housing, health care, and local services.
Opponents — including the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), the Association of Dutch Municipalities (VNG), and the Dutch Council for Refugees — say the laws are unworkable, invite legal defeats, and will make life harder for both refugees and Dutch society.
Changing administrative rules and evidentiary standards
The Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) has tried to speed decisions, including:
- Lifting the formal deadline from 6 to 15 months in late 2023
- Testing pilot tracks to accelerate processing
However, results are uneven. Many asylum seekers report unpredictable scheduling and different treatment by nationality.
Important procedural shifts:
- Since July 2024, applicants must present “objective evidence” to back their story — a tougher standard that is often hard to meet for those fleeing quickly or from countries with limited records.
- Caseworkers must track shifting lists of safe and safe third countries:
- Removed from safe country list in 2024: India, Georgia, Trinidad and Tobago
- Removed from safe third country list: Rwanda, Jamaica
- Added as safe in 2024: Chad, Ethiopia, Ghana
These changes affect how the IND weighs claims and the likelihood of protection for certain nationalities.
Who is arriving — demographic snapshot (Q1 2025)
The numbers reveal a mixed picture beneath the headline decline:
- Age and gender
- Three-quarters of applicants were under 35
- One quarter were under 18
- Men made up more than two-thirds of arrivals; Turkish applicants were 78% male
- Nationality specifics
- Eritrean minors accounted for half of all Eritrean applicants
- Family reunification
- 3,700 relatives joined recognized refugees in Q1 2025 — up 14% from the prior quarter
- Over 81% of those family arrivals were Syrians
These trends matter for local planning: children need schooling and stable housing, while councils struggle to find permanent homes even as emergency shelters close.
Policy changes overview (concise list)
Several changes would touch the day-to-day lives of asylum seekers if fully enacted and upheld in court:
- Naturalisation and integration
- Wait for Dutch citizenship would double from 5 to 10 years
- Language requirement raised to B1 level
- Many new citizens may need to give up their first nationality if permissible under their home country’s law
- Family reunification
- Recognized refugees could bring close family only after holding status for at least 2 years
- Applicants must show adequate housing and stable income
- Entry rules would narrow for adult children
- Reception and status security
- Crisis measures allow downgraded reception
- Automatic permanent residence after five years could be suspended
- People may be asked to leave if their home country is later deemed “safe”
- Procedures and proof
- Decision time limit officially rose to 15 months (Dec 2023), but many cases run longer
- The “objective evidence” requirement (from July 2024) increases risk of refusal for people with limited documents
- Safe country updates
- 2024 adjustments to safe/safe third country lists affect speed and outcome likelihood
Legislative path and EU dimension
All eyes now turn to the upper house (Eerste Kamer), where the government lacks a majority. The debate could:
- Slow, water down, or block parts of the package
- Still allow the cabinet, via the asylum crisis declaration, to add more limits quickly — including a possible pause on new filings for up to two years
The cabinet has asked Brussels for opt-outs from parts of EU asylum rules and is exploring deals with third countries, including the idea of sending rejected applicants to Uganda. EU approval looks unlikely; any offshore plan would face fierce court challenges and potential infringement actions if pursued without EU-level cover.
Impact on applicants — practical and human consequences
For people seeking safety in the Netherlands, the headline effects are:
- Longer waits, less predictability, and tighter rules
- The backlog — now over 50,000 — means interviews and decisions can follow months of silence with little warning
- Parents fear children will spend formative years in limbo
- Young men from countries with rising refusal rates worry about detention and removal if they cannot meet the new evidence tests
Specific impacts:
- Families face new delay: even successful applicants may wait two years to bring a spouse or child, and must prove a lease and income
- The longer naturalisation timeline slows paths to full civic life, voting rights, work mobility, and access to jobs requiring Dutch citizenship
- Municipal leaders warn that closing emergency shelters before permanent housing is ready will shift pressure elsewhere
The Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers has urged cities to build stable, small-scale housing so people with status can move out of reception centers faster, freeing space for new arrivals. But with fewer first-time cases and a large inventory of undecided files, the system risks locking in long waits without improving on-the-ground conditions.
Practical advice for applicants and lawyers
With the higher proof bar, applicants and lawyers are adjusting strategies:
- Gather any available paper trail: identity documents, police reports, medical records, social media posts, or witness statements
- Ensure consistency across interviews and documents — crucial under the objective evidence rule
- Vulnerable groups — unaccompanied minors and survivors of torture — may struggle most with the new demands
Important: People seeking protection can track official updates, check processing timelines, and read policy guidance on the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND) website: https://ind.nl/en
IND pages explain how to register a first-time asylum claim and outline the application process from intake to interviews and decisions.
Broader implications and likely outcomes
- Officials argue the stricter stance will reduce pull factors and keep services functioning.
- Critics say harsh rules will not fix the backlog and could drive people into homelessness or irregular work, increasing risk and community strain.
- Legal experts predict parts of the package may collide with EU law and the European Convention on Human Rights, setting up court fights that could add more delay.
The months ahead will test whether the upper house trims the bills, whether courts enforce EU standards, and whether the fall in first-time asylum applications lasts. Even if arrivals stay low, the larger challenge is whether the Netherlands can clear the backlog fairly and give people quick, lawful decisions. Until then, the system’s twin pressures — fewer new claims but many undecided files — will keep thousands of families waiting for answers.
This Article in a Nutshell
In 2025 the Netherlands experienced a steep drop in first-time asylum applications—2,130 by August—yet the asylum backlog swelled above 50,000 open cases. Authorities cite tighter European border controls and origin-country changes, while analysts emphasize domestic policy choices that deter filings. The lower house approved two major laws in July 2025: the Two Status System Act, which splits protection into two tracks with reduced rights for people fleeing war or disasters, and the Asylum Emergency Measures Act, which criminalizes undocumented presence and assistance and enables forced removals. The IND raised evidentiary standards in July 2024 and extended formal decision deadlines, complicating prospects for many applicants. Demographic data show most applicants are under 35 and predominantly male; family reunification and naturalisation rules would tighten. The package faces scrutiny in the Senate and likely legal challenges at EU and human-rights courts. The immediate policy test is whether authorities can reduce arrivals while clearing the backlog and delivering timely, lawful decisions.
