Executive summary

• Author: Mehtonen, Susanna
• Pages: 6-7

IPOL | Policy Department for Economic, Scie ntific and Quality of Life Policies

6 PE 638.397

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Finland has a functioni ng rec ep tion and integration system, in particular for quota refugees. The

rec ept ion sys tem and pr eparednes s plans hav e all owed stake holde rs to accum ulate and hol d on to the

knowhow of rec ept ion and inte gration a ctivi tie s. I n 201 5, the reception system was abl e to stretc h to

adapt to the ten-fold incre ase in t he arr ivals of as ylum ap pli cants. Eve ryone who arrive d had a b ed to

sleep in and a roof over their head. However, the increase in applications created a public panic that

led to vast and perm anent ame ndments i n the migration legislation and serious deficiencies in the

right of asylum seeke rs to a fair procedure, the right to family unity and the right to non-discrimination.

For example, the restri ctions in access to free le gal aid, the restrictions of the appellate procedures and

the political pressure to acc el erate de ci sion-mak ing, have led to fears that individuals with the ri ght to

inte rnational protec tion will not rece ive pr otection due to the defi cienc ies in the asylum p rocedure.

The legisl ative am endments have al so create d a new group of i rregular m igrants in Finl and, leaving

failed asylum seekers who cannot be returned outside the remit of society and vulnerable to

exploitation.

Integration measures combine activities by municipalities, authorities and the third sector. This is seen

as a positive aspect of the Finnish system, but the current measures lack adequate resources and

longsi ghted p lanning. Too many i ntegrat ion act ivit ies re ly on p rojec t-based funding, t hus not all owing

stakehol ders to make l ong-term plans. The policy that asylum seekers lack access to integration

measures does not take into account that asylum seekers may spend several years in the country before

their procedure is finished and that they would benefit from integration activities already from t he

begi nning of thei r arri val.

Conclusio ns and recomm endat ions

Finla nd should re consider the le gislative ame ndments made in t he years 2 014 – 2 016 an d com mi t to

provi de a fair p rocedure to all asylum ap plicants. Inte gration should be seen as a long-term pro ject that

benefits society and refugees.

• The right to free legal aid throughout the asylum determination procedure should be

reinstated.

• Asylum appl icants should hav e acces s to exp ert le gal advice on t heir ri ghts and duties in the

asylum determination pro cedure befo re t he as ylum in ter view.

• The deadlines and other restrictions on the appellate procedure, that are only applicable to

asylum cases, create a discriminative procedure and should be revoked.

• Restrictions on the right to family reunification should be revoked.

• The right to a temporary residence permit for failed asylum seekers who cannot be r eturned

should be reinstated in order to avoid pushing failed asylum seeke rs into irregular status.

• Asylum seekers should have access to integration activities upon arrival.

• Access to work for asylum seekers should be made easier.

• The governme nt should wo rk wit h munic ipal ities to ensur e that there are enough pl aces in

muni cip aliti es for those who have be en grant ed int ernati onal p rote ction.

• Asylum seekers should be part of the integr ation me asures upon ar rival in the country and have

access to measures that currently are offered to all other regul ar groups of migrants except

asylum seekers who are in the midst of their asylum proceedings.