The Netherlands plans to tighten border controls by the end of November

The Dutch government plans to introduce border checks from the end of November 2024 as part of measures to reduce the number of asylum seekers entering the country, NOS has reported. 

Dutch border controls to limit irregular immigration

In a document leaked to NOS, the PVV, NSC and Prime Minister Dick Schoof have agreed to introduce border controls by the end of November. Temporary border checks such as these are allowed under Article 25 of the Schengen Borders Code, where there is a serious threat to political policy or internal security, as long as they notify the EU Commission in advance.

Details regarding the exact plans for the border controls have not been revealed as of yet, but the focus will be on stopping “irregular migrants” - people who have already applied for asylum in Germany and Belgium - and sending them back to the countries they are trying to leave. This could cause traffic jams and longer waiting times at the borders like those seen when Germany imposed similar land border controls earlier this year.

Asylum measures in the Netherlands

The border controls aren’t the only measure the government is taking to reduce the number of asylum seekers coming to the Netherlands. Under a new law called the “Asylum Emergency Measures Act”, indefinite asylum permits will be discontinued and fixed-period permits will be reduced from five years to three.

Other measures include designating “safe areas” in Syria where asylum seekers can be returned and scrapping the need for municipalities to house a certain number of people with asylum permits. In the document, the prime minister has written that the asylum system in the Netherlands is “unsustainable in its current form.”

These measures come after initial plans to declare an asylum emergency were abandoned. Now that the VVD and BBB parties are on board, the cabinet is expected to make a final decision on the plan next Friday.