Asylum process

Logistics of Refugee Aid
A Comparison of the Asylum Process in Germany and Finland
Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences
htw saar, Saarland University of Applied Sciences
31.05.2016
2
Contributing authors:
Aavik Aneken
Alla Botika
Altin Benjamin
Barachino Helena
Bilson Geoffrey
Correia Helena
Ersch Celina
Gaddis Jonathan
Kamravamanesh Mohammad
Kast Christian
Koivusalo Joonas
Kohl Salomé
Nurvo Aleksi
Ojanen Saara
Sormunen Ville
Signore Hayden
Versokin Uljana
Virtanen Aku
Werth Benjamin
Zieder Amelie
Zucca Michele
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Contents
1
Introduction
5
2
Overview of the Humanitarian Crisis
7
3
4
2.1
German influx
10
2.2
German Refugee Numbers
13
2.3
Forecasts for Finland
14
2.4
Forecasts for Europe as a whole
15
Asylum Legislation
17
3.1
United Nations Law
17
3.2
European Asylum Law
17
3.3
1/1 EU-Turkey agreement
18
3.4
National Law
18
3.5
Asylum Law in Germany
19
3.6
Asylum Law in Finland
19
3.7
Recent updates and changes
20
Receiving asylum seekers: Initial procedures
21
4.1
21
4.2
5
Germany
Main access points
21
Asylum process
22
Financial assistance
26
Finland
26
Main access points
26
Asylum process
28
Financial assistance
30
Key Logistical Aspects of Reception Centers and Processes
31
5.1
31
5.2
Germany
Key Logistical Aspects of Reception Centers
31
Accommodation
31
Initial Reception Centre
31
Collective Accommodation Centres
32
Decentralized Accommodation
32
Supply
33
Social Services
34
Contingency Planning
35
Additional Information
36
Finland
36
Accommodation
36
4
6
8
39
Transportation of asylum seekers
43
Contingency planning
44
Logistical Aspects after the Acceptance of the Asylum Application
46
6.1
46
6.2
7
Provided Services
Germany
Asylum Process
46
Landesverwaltung Saarland
48
Preliminary Decisions
48
Allocations into Regional Associations
49
Integration into Municipalities
49
Housing
50
Financing
50
Services after Integration
50
Rejected Asylum Application
53
The Procedure of the Deportation
53
Voluntary Return
54
Reasons for a Voluntary Return
54
Assistance for a Voluntary Return
55
Finland
56
Asylum Process
56
Process after obtaining a residence permit
57
Support
58
Voluntary Organizations
58
Rejected applications and reasons
59
The deportation process
59
Voluntary return
60
Comparison and Conclusion
62
7.1
Distribution
62
7.2
Registration process and network
62
7.3
Asylum process
63
7.4
Integration
64
7.5
Working capability
64
7.6
Psychological Support
65
7.7
Decision making process
65
7.8
Perspective
65
References
67
5
1
Introduction
This report is the result of a joint innovation project conducted during the spring 2016
between Helsinki Metropolia University of Applied Sciences and Saarland University of
Applied Sciences. The project was undertaken by fifteen students from Metropolia UAS
in Helsinki/Finland and six students from htw saar in Saarbrücken/Germany. Professor
Thomas Bousonville from Germany and Anne Steinhaus, M.A. and Senior Lecturer Kaija
Haapasalo from Finland supervised the teams.
The purpose of the project was to study, analyse and compare the logistical issues of
the refugee crises management in Finland and in Germany. The participating students
were expected to gain more knowledge and understanding of logistics and SCM related
topics in the field of humanitarian logistics. The sources of this research are literature
review of current articles and qualitative research in form of interviews conducted to
various professionals and volunteers both in Finland and Germany. The target was to
clarify and compare the ways the refugee crisis in both Germany and Finland has been
handled. The students also got to practice their teamwork and project management skills
across borders and apply the tools provided during studies. This was enabled during the
spring via webinars and project management software and in May 9th to 13th 2016 in
Germany when eleven of the students from Metropolia UAS participated at the Europe
Week of htw saar.
At the beginning of the project, the students were instructed to design and implement a
research project with the intention of examining the current refugee crisis from the
perspective of how logistics plays a supportive role in such a complex crisis. One of the
underlining reason for comparing German and Finnish asylum systems was to identify
best practices leading to value additions to the asylum process and the feasibility of
adopting such practices from Germany to Finland and vice versa.
The beginning of the project consisted of two parts: the literary background research of
the crises and a field study. The students discussed the scope of the project and decided
that it would concern the territorial boundaries of Finland and Germany. Due to the
sensitivity of the topic, it was agreed that only facts and statistics would be included in
the report and all political and personal opinions left out. Political issues were only
deemed inside the scope when discussing legal aspect of refugee and asylum law or a
political decision had a direct impact on the asylum process.
Early on the students realized that it was quite challenging to find information about the
operations management and logistics of the crises. The field study provided a help to
this. From the interviews held with the various professionals working in the refugee
lodging or reception centres, humanitarian organizations and the immigration
department of the Ministry of Interior in Finland, the students discovered crucial
information about the situation. Furthermore, it was important for the students to
understand that the situation is volatile and changing every week as the crises is still very
much present in Europe.
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The Finnish and German teams were divided into five mixed subgroups that conducted
their own, individual studies on their respective chapters. These subteams were
managed by the project management subteam consisting of Jonathan Gaddis, Saara
Ojanen, Michele Zucca from Metropolia UAS and Helena Barachino from htw saar. A
project management tool called Freedcamp was used for communication between team
members and three webinars were organized to discuss issues face-to-face and present
the results during the Europe Week of htw saar May 12th 2016.
Project team consisting of students and supervisors from Metropolia UAS and htw saar
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2
Overview of the Humanitarian Crisis
Koivusalo Joonas, Kamravamanesh Mohammad, Virtanen Aku
This chapter will give a brief overview and context of the humanitarian crisis. It will
specifically be focused on introducing the reader to the current asylum situation in
Finland and Germany and to the recent history of the crisis.
In 2015, over a million migrants and refugees crossed the European borders, initiating
what would later become a generalized crisis, as countries struggled to cope with the
mass influx, and creating a division in the European Union over how to deal with the
resettling population.
The European migrant crisis or European refugee crisis began in 2015, when a rising
number of asylum seekers and migrants made the journey to the European Union (EU)
to seek asylum, traveling across the Mediterranean Sea or through Southeast Europe.
They came from areas such as Western and South Asia, Africa, and the Western
Balkans. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the top three
nationalities of the over one million Mediterranean Sea arrivals in 2015 were Syrian
(forty-nine percent), Afghan (twenty-one percent) and Iraqi (eight percent). Of the
refugees and migrants arriving in Europe by sea in 2015, fifty-eight percent were men,
seventeen percent women and twenty-five percent children (BBC, 2015).
The vast majority arrived by sea but some migrants have made their way over land,
principally via Turkey and Albania and winter has not stemmed the flow of people - with
135,711 people reaching Europe by sea since the start of 2016, according to the
UNHCR. Most people attempting the perilous crossing are fleeing poverty or violent
conflict in their native countries and are attempting to reach Europe, where they seek
asylum and better employment opportunities. Countries like Spain, Greece, Italy and the
small island nation of Malta are common destinations (UNHCR, 2015).
Every refugee is entitled to asylum in Europe under the Common European Asylum
System, which sets out a framework for his or her protection and rehabilitation. However,
several countries are unable to implement this framework effectively with the sudden and
ever-increasing influx of illegal migrants. There have been allegations of mistreatment of
asylum-seekers in the past, and measures to deal with the problem include a proposal
to create offshore detention centers in so-called “third countries” like Morocco, Egypt and
Tunisia. A large part of the effort is funded by the E.U.’s Asylum, Migration and
Integration fund, which have set aside 3.137 billion euros for the period of 2014-2020
(Rishi Iyengar, 2015).
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Figure 1: Asylum seekers on their way to Europe (Source: Massimo Sestini—Polaris, 2014)
Figure 2: Top 10 origins of people applying for asylum in the EU in 2015.
(Source: Eurostat, 2015)
The second data provided, displays a more accurate and specified version of asylum
claims in Europe by the end of 2015.
9
Figure 3: Asylum claims in Europe 2015 (Source: Eurostat, 2015)
Figure 4: Asylum applications in EU and EFTA states between January 1st and June 30th, 2015
(Source: Eurostat 2015)
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Most of the migrants are entering the EU territory through Turkey and Greece in case of
Finland the influx is mostly from the neighboring Russia.
Figure 5: The Raja-Jooseppi border crossing point with Russia in Finnish Lapland
(Source: Yle.fi, 2016)
There has been a halt to arrivals from Russia. The number of arriving asylum seekers
has dropped dramatically since its peak September 2015. This year the focus of arrivals
shifted from Finland's northern border with Sweden - where most arrivals were Iraqis - to
its northern border with Russia. In January and February, more than one thousand
asylum seekers came in from Russia. The largest groups were Afghans and Indians
(Yle.fi, 2016).
2.1
German influx
In 2014 Germany was the biggest recipient of new asylum claims, with an estimated
173,100 asylum applications. That put it ahead of the United States, with 121,200, the
UN refugee agency UNHCR reports. Germany expects as many as 800,000 non-EU
migrants this year (Laurence Peter, 2015).
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Figure 6: Migrant route to Germany (Source: BBC 2015)
Turkey (87,800) and then Sweden (75,100) were the largest recipients thereafter. The
UK received 31,300 new applications. A successful asylum claim often means the
authorities granting an applicant refugee status - the fullest protection, entitling a migrant
to stay, get a job and eventually get citizenship. But an asylum seeker can also get
subsidiary protection status. It means the applicant does not class as a refugee under
the 1951 Refugee Convention, but still needs international protection. The UK uses the
term "humanitarian protection" for that. (Laurence Peter, 2015)
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Figure 7: Syria, Europe and the Migration Crisis. (Source: UNHCR, MPC, 2015)
Last year, governments along the Balkan migration route introduced border controls, and
some even built border fences to reduce the flow of asylum seekers. In the days ahead,
Western Balkan nations such as Slovenia, Croatia and Macedonia will have to enhance
border controls again. New fences and migration quotas cannot be ruled out. And as the
main Balkan route becomes harder to cross, asylum seekers could be forced to look for
alternative routes, creating larger migrant flows in countries such as Romania, Slovakia
and the Czech Republic.
The migrant crisis will reach a new climax in March or April, when weather conditions
improve and more people try to enter the European Union. Migrants who
encounter bottlenecks around the Balkan route (Stratfor, 2016) could protest at
international borders or even clash with locals. Greece's situation will be particularly
difficult because migrants entering through Turkey probably will find it harder to keep
moving northward from Greek territory. In the long run, the immigration controls in the
Western Balkans could lead to a redirection of migrant flows. In 2015, the eastern
Mediterranean route, from Turkey to Greece, replaced the central Mediterranean route,
from Libya to Italy, as the main passage for migrants. Stricter border controls along the
Balkan route could encourage some migrants to opt for the central Mediterranean route
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again. This is one of the reasons for Italy's diplomatic efforts to create a stable
government in Libya: Rome wants a working Libyan government to combat human
trafficking rings and keep asylum seekers from crossing the Mediterranean (Stratfor,
2016).
Deportations are difficult to enforce because of massive bureaucracy, lack of resources
and the fact that some migrants do not have reliable IDs showing their countries of origin
while others hide from the authorities. In mid-2015, Berlin openly violated the Dublin
system when it announced that all Syrian asylum seekers would be welcome in
Germany.
Possibly influenced by Austria’s similar decision, Germany announced January 21th 2016
that it would extend controls on its southern border indefinitely. Germany, Europe's
largest economy, received more than one million asylum seekers in 2015. Months of
political and social pressure to implement border controls and asylum quotas have led
Chancellor Angela Merkel to look for ways reduce the influx of migrants.
Berlin's original strategy had two parts: cooperate with Turkey to prevent migrants from
entering the European Union and support Brussels' proposal to distribute asylum
seekers across the European Union. But so far, Turkey has not made any substantial
moves to keep migrants from entering Europe — Ankara's recent announcement that
Syrian refugees will be given the right to work has not yet proved effective — and EU
members have ignored the relocation plan. The failure of this strategy created friction
within Germany's government and forced Berlin to tighten its migration rules.
2.2
German Refugee Numbers
Germany has been a desirable target country for a considerable amount of refugees.
With over half a million refugees Germany is under pressure with the growing influx of
immigrants and asylum seekers. After the summer of 2015 when Chancellor Angela
Merkel and Germany welcomed the refugees with open hands and cheers the mood in
the country has started to get bitterer towards the immigration. There have been growing
concerns on how this huge number of refugees from many different cultures is going to
be absorbed. The events of the New Year; the sexual assaults on women by immigrant
and refugee men in Cologne and other cities did not help the situation and police were
accused of failing to contain and prevent the situation due to “political correctness”. The
welcoming attitude of the German people has had some cracks and anti-immigration
groups have a growing support, but still a majority of the populous has positive feelings
towards the refugees and immigration. There have been rumors from within the
government that closing of the borders could be a possibility with the German
government attempting to pressure other governments into doing more to solve the
migrant crisis (Telegraph, 2016).
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Figure 8: Number of (non-EU) asylum seekers in the EU and EFTA Member States 2015
(Source: Eurostat, 2015)
There are no signs of the refugee crisis ending, by end April 181,000 refugees have
arrived to the EU using the Mediterranean route. In 2015 the figure for the first four
months was 22,408 refugees arriving by sea. The forecasts on arriving refugees for 2016
are still unclear but it is certain that the crisis is not over. Even though in some parts of
Europe the refugee flows have seem to dwindle, Germany and other EU countries still
need to be ready for future refugee flows. Even if the flows of refugees are decreasing
the integration and accommodation of the accepted refugees are going to strain the
budgets of many European governments. Forecast prepared by the Cologne Institute for
Economic Research estimates that the refugee crisis is going to cost the German
government fifty billion euros in the next two years (CIER 2016).
2.3
Forecasts for Finland
According to the Finnish minister of foreign affairs Timo Soini, there is a strong possibility
of a new wave of refugees leaving for Europe from Libya. Libya’s coast is long, and
there are clear signs of human trafficking. Human traffickers are looking for new routes
as the European Union and Turkey have closed the route, which was through Turkey
(Helsingin Sanomat, 2016).
Third-party labor leasing companies have begun an experiment where refugees with a
residence permit are given a possibility to get employed faster than usual. On top of
given the possibility to work and get paid, they are also offered language courses and
other courses regarding the new society they inhabit.
Getting employed has previously taken three to five years for immigrants with a
residence permit. This new system of aiming to get immigrants get employed as fast as
possible could be a method where the state could even save money through taxes. It
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can also be therapeutic for refugees who have had negative experiences before and
during their journey to Finland (Helsingin Sanomat 2016).
The Ministry of Defense of Finland has conducted a study on Finns’ opinions on current
security and defense issues of Finland. The main point of the survey indicates there is a
growing sense of insecurity, and a partial credit is due to the influx of refugees, which
creates tension in Finland as Finns are not used to mass immigration. This is the first
time since the start of these interviews in 1990 that has so many respondents indicated
an increased sense of insecurity. Most of the feeling of insecurity stems from economic
situations regarding employment in Finland and international terrorism. The vast majority
have negative views on the increasing amount of asylum seekers both in Finland and
other European countries. In Finland’s case, the negative views are seen because the
immigration is seen as uncontrolled. Sixty-five per cent of the respondents see the world
being more insecure in five years’ time (ABDI 2016). The number was fifty-six percent in
2015. The figures can be seen in figure 9.
Figure 9: MTS 2015 Figures in English (Source: Bulletins, 2016)
2.4
Forecasts for Europe as a whole
The European Commission has recognized six different areas where the EU has to step
up during 2016. These fields are as follows:
On relocation: only two hundred and seventy-two individuals have been relocated
out of the 160,000 agreed in September
On resettlement
On hotspots: concentrating the efforts are a must for relocation.
On return: persons who do not have a right to stay in Europe must be returned faster
to their country of origin
On Schengen: help Schengen operate as it normally would
On the European border and Coast Guard.
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Among these areas, the European Union will fully integrate the Lisbon treaty and
continue to enforce accelerated work on the remaining components to find a cohesive
method of handling the humanitarian crisis.
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3
Asylum Legislation
Sormunen Ville, Signore Hayden
This section will introduce the laws and regulations regarding asylum seekers and
refugees. The highest level of ruling legislation is presented by the United Nations. This
is then followed by agreements of the European Union, which support the United Nation
conventions between the member states. After the international law comes the national
laws of separate countries, which determine the actions taken by each country in relation
to international law.
3.1
United Nations Law
The laws and guild lines set by the United Nations pertaining to refugees are the
backbone for all other Refugee law. When looking at the United Nations regulations for
refugees it is important to look at the 1951 refugee convention. The 1951 convention
came directly after World War II and was a set of laws the help govern the refugees left
from the devastation of the war. During the 1951 convention a few key points were
defined. The first of the key things defined was what a refugee is and what rights they
have. It is stated that anyone fearing persecution for a number of reasons has legal rights
to apply for refugee status. Along with defining what a refugee is, it also went about
explaining the responsibilities of the host countries in which the refugees apply for
asylum. Through this a list of standards are expected from each host country, such as
food, water, and shelter. (UNHCR, 2000)
Although the 1951 convention served its purpose, in 1967 a meeting was held to better
improve the previous convention. A few main issues were revised and added to the
existing laws. The biggest issue was that it was too strict as it originally only included
countries that were effect by the Second World War. After the Second World War other
conflicts started to arise and the comity found a need to include all other citizens of other
countries to be able to register of refugees. A few other important things came from this
addendum such as the safety from non-refoulement. This basically makes it illegal for
the host country to forcibly send a refugee back to a dangerous area. Along with these
key points it allowed for other countries, apart from the Allied nations of WWII, to sign
the deal and be a part of the deal. (UNHCR, 2000)
3.2
European Asylum Law
The asylum law throughout Europe in a very straight forward group of rules that allow
fairness and safety for all parties involved. There are a few laws that are known as the
Common European asylum law system. They state that asylum in a fundamental human
right, meaning that any person that deserves asylum for whatever reason should have it
granted to them. Because of this it is the law there is another section stating that the
granting of asylum cannot be a lottery. This basically means that all cases of asylum
must be treated with the same respect and examined in the same way as all other cases.
It is therefore illegal to treat any person with a bias, neither positive nor negative.
European countries are also required by law to provide humane reception conditions,
such as housing, whilst refugees wait for confirmation of residence status. The host
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countries are only legally allowed to use detention centres, such as prisons or jails, as a
last resort for housing of refugees (Commission, 2014).
Aside from the Common Asylum Law System there are other laws that are taking into
effect to ensure a smoother and fairer process when dealing with refuges. There is a
whole list of EU council regulations that pertain directly to refugee law. It is stated in
these regulations that all European Union countries are required to accept applications
of ANY asylum seeker that applies at their border or even from within the countries
territory. The host country is also required by law to inform the asylum seeker of any
regulations and requirements that must be fulfilled and how much time they have for
everything to be completed. As these laws are to protect both parties involved the host,
countries are also granted some rights. For instance the host countries are allowed to
send some asylum seekers to a third party country for processing and housing, as long
as it is a safe country and does not violate and rules of the Geneva Convention of Human
rights (Commission, 2014).
There is a list of laws that regulate the way a refugee may conduct applications, which
is governed by the Dublin regulation. The Dublin regulation states what is expected from
the refugee when applying for asylum. This document makes it illegal for refugees to file
more than one application at a time in other countries. If there is an attempt to create
another only the first application will be processed. This is to reduce the number of
“floating asylum seekers” as this makes the first country they apply responsible for the
acceptance/ rejection of the application. Once a decision has been reached that decision
is final around all of the European Union. It is impossible for the asylum seeker to create
anymore applications and must respect the original decision, be it acceptance or
rejection. If they receive a negative reply they are sent back and are processed for
deportation. (European Migration Law, 2004) (European Union Law, 2012)
3.3
1/1 EU-Turkey agreement
On March 29 the EU and Turkey decided on a plan to stop irregular migration from
Turkey into the EU. The 1/1 deal consists of a set of guidelines that outline what qualifies
for deportation back from EU to Turkey. According to the agreement for every illegal
migrant in Greece that is deported back to Turkey, a refugee in a refugee camp will be
transferred into a European country by a quota. Everybody arriving illegally in the Greek
Islands from this day will be returned directly to Turkey. This is meant to decrease
possibilities and the attractiveness of human trafficking and illegal border crossings.
(European Commission, 2016) The agreement will pose the receiving countries with
quotas of refugees outside of the normal influx of refugees, which might cause
complications in the receiving system. But it will also distribute the influx in a proper
manner over the whole union.
3.4
National Law
The national laws of Finland and Germany are virtually identical, due to the fact that they
are merely reconfigurations of the UN and EU conventions. The national laws state the
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international conventions in the proper national format. Both Finland and Germany fully
apply the international agreements in their own legislative systems.
3.5
Asylum Law in Germany
Article sixteen of the German constitution (Asylrecht – Asylum right) states that people
who are subject to political persecution in their home country have the right to seek
asylum. (Bundesministerium der Justiz und Verbraucherschutz, ei pvm) The German
Residence Act (Aufenthaltsgesetz) stipulates the refugee status. (Bundesministerium
der Justiz und Verbraucherschutz, 2008).
The Asylum Procedure Act grants protection against political persecution for people
seeking for it. It states the reasons why someone can be granted for asylum and
protection in Germany, and why possibly not. It states that an alien will be eligible for
asylum if they can prove that they are in real risk in their country of origin. In Chapter
four of the act the asylum procedures and general rules of the procedures are stated.
The Asylum Procedure Act stipulates, that people that are under political persecution or
subsidiary protection, are allowed to seek asylum. Humanitarian reasons are to be
considered only when the Ministry of the Interior so orders. In 2016 some adjustments
were made to the German basic law in relation to the refugee crisis. (Bundesministerium
der Justiz und Verbraucherschutz, 2014)
3.6
Asylum Law in Finland
The Finnish constitution states in section nine that a foreigner is allowed to enter and
exit Finland, move inside the country freely and that human rights also apply to
foreigners. It also states the non-refoulement policy.
Apart from the constitution there is one law that applies to refugees and asylum seekers
in Finland. It is called the Aliens Act (301/2004 - Ulkomaalaislaki). Its purpose is to make
sure that good governance and legal protection is ensured to foreigners entering Finland.
It is also meant to promote human rights and managed immigration in regards to
international agreements that Finland is a part of. The law also states that it does not
allow the restriction of foreigners’ rights any more than necessary. The reasons, why a
person should receive international protection from Finland are political persecution,
subsidiary protection or refugee status based on humanitarian basis. This differs from
the German law, as in Finland the humanitarian basis is directly in the legislation.
Section eighty-seven of the Aliens Act lists the reasons at which somebody can seek for
asylum and it also lists the reason, why somebody will most likely not be granted asylum.
The law withholds the explanation of persecution as well as the refugee quota. The
National Administrative Act (434/2003) is applied to the right to interview asylum seekers
on the basis for the application for asylum. In order to find out whether aliens are granted
permission to enter the country, to stay in it or possibly removed from it the Police Act
(493/1995) is enforced. Legal assistance to aliens if needed is also assured in the Legal
Aid Act (257/2002) (Finlex, 2004).
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Ultimately the Aliens Act is responsible for, in unison with the international agreements,
making sure that Aliens are treated fairly, given a change to seek asylum in Finland if
needed, what grounds they will or will not be accepted in Finland and on what grounds
deportation or refusal to enter the country is issued. Non-refoulement is also handled in
section one hundred and forty-seven. These sections within the law function as
guidelines for all different departments working with refugees from the border guard to
asylum centres and the police. In 2016 some parts of the law were subject to minor
change in order to make the refugee process slightly faster.
3.7
Recent updates and changes
Due to the abnormality of the situation the legislative system has faces a wide scope of
problems. This is because the national legislations and for example the Dublin
agreement were based on a normal influx of refugees, rather than crisis as this. This has
led for both countries, and the EU-level to adjust their legislation to make it more efficient
and faster and to raise the standards on which grounds applicants are able to receive
asylum. For example, making family combining more difficult, meaning if one person of
the family receives asylum, the rest of the family will not automatically get that status. At
the other end the countries have taken out of the legislation possible waiting periods, for
example they have made it easier to deport people that are denied the asylum, especially
criminals. (Deutsche Welle, 2016) Now both countries can deport denied asylum seekers
back to their home countries more easily. This took effect in Germany already at the end
of 2015, where the German government has passed “packages” which contain updates
on the existing refugee law. (Deutsche Welle, 2015) In Finland on the contrary making
changes to the legislation is a more rigorous and slow process and little changes have
been made. As of May 2016 the Finnish government deemed previously unsafe
countries as safe in an attempt to curb the amount of incoming refugees. Previously
these countries, whose status was changed, were the Baltic countries, but now also Iraq,
Somalia and Afghanistan was added to the list, where only people under persecution
would possibly get asylum and the possibility for humanitarian asylum was taken of the
list for the people from those countries. (Aalto, 2016)
The legislations on national level were merely reconfigurations of UN and EU -level
conventions and were setup to put them into actions, but as they covered a lot of ground,
they were too slow to match the current situation. Essentially, the crisis has created a
need for a more lean legislation, which would make the whole process of asylum seeking
for all parties more efficient and faster. Many of the clauses that the laws held, for
instance with the permission to set up a Registration centre when needed, were put into
effect. In Germany, the political pressure, and the political system to change them has
been more willing than it has been in Finland. However, both countries have made their
respectable adjustments.
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4
Receiving asylum seekers: Initial procedures
Salome Clara, Benjamin Werth, Alla Botika, Geoffrey Bilson
This chapter explains the main access points, through which the asylum seekers enter
Germany and Finland. It also describes the initial registration of the asylum seekers, the
systems that help with this process and the financial aid provided to asylum seekers.
4.1
Germany
Main access points
As most of the asylum seekers make their way through the Balkan states, the closest
German border for them is the one between Austria and Germany. Especially Lower
Bavaria, a German region situated in the South-East of the country, is experiencing a
great influx of asylum seekers. The German city Passau, which is located next to the
Austrian border, is where most of the asylum seekers arrive.
Figure 10: Asylum seeker routes through Balkan states (Source: Spiegel Online, 2015)
As Germany is in the heart of the Schengen zone, there is nothing apart from the rivers
Inn Salzach and Donau, to stop people traveling from Germany to Austria. Therefore
bridges are functioning as main access points through which you can enter Germany
easily when coming from Austria (Handelsblatt, 2015).
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Figure 11: Asylum seeker routes: Bridges Bavaria/Austria
(Source: Bayerischer Rundfunk, 2015).
Because the borders are open, it is difficult for Germany to keep track on the asylum
seekers entering the country. Some asylum seekers are coming by bus and trains that
have been organized by the State of Austria. Others take regular public transport to cross
the border and ideally get intercepted by the police at the train station (Metzlef, 2016).
Others enter the country by foot or by traveling with smugglers for whom they pay for the
border-crossing transport. In most cases the asylum seekers get dropped off at a
motorway service station. The German police is actively working on this as it is known to
be the most dangerous way to travel and authorities have no control on how many people
are entering Germany, where they come from and who they are (Die Welt 2015).
4.1.1.1 Airports
In some cases, the asylum seekers arrive by plane at airports. In this situation the Airport
procedure (Flughafenverfahren § 18a AsylVfG) is applied. The Airport procedure is for
the asylum seekers coming from safe countries or for those who have lost their passports
and are asking for asylum at the border security. Their asylum procedure is taking place
at the airport while the asylum seeker is still in the transit zone. The process has to be
concluded within two days, or else the person has to be given entry and their asylum
case will be followed-up in Germany (BAMF, 2015a).
Asylum process
Arriving at the German border is the first step of a very long process for every asylum
seeker. There are different institutions and authorities involved in the process at various
stages. The figure 12 shows how the process is taking place and which institutions are
interacting with each other.
23
Figure 12: Asylum process in Germany (Source: Authors, 2016)
4.1.2.1 Initial registration
According to the law on asylum procedure (Asylverfahrensgesetz) § 13: "A foreigner who
has not got the required documents in order to enter the country has to ask for asylum
immediately at the German border. If the foreigner has not done so and has already
entered the German territory, they must immediately go to one of the numerous reception
centers in order to get registered as an asylum seeker.”
However, many asylum seekers do not know about the asylum procedure and often get
intercepted near the border where they are directly transferred to the closest reception
center. There is a great amount of people entering the county unnoticed. Usually they
show up at a reception center in order to get support (housing, medical aid and food etc.)
or the police stops them by chance somewhere in the country and brings them to a
reception center.
Getting registered is crucial for asylum seekers as it is the only way to get a temporary
resident permit and being allowed to apply for asylum. There are different steps in the
registration process that an asylum seeker has to go through. Firstly, they are asked to
show their identity papers, fill in a form about their personal data, such as name, date of
birth and origin. Next their fingerprints and a biometrical photo is taken (Hoffmann, 2016).
According to the Asylum law, refugees must furthermore undergo a medical health
check. This consists of a general check up to make sure they are not infected with any
kind of contagious illnesses, an X-ray of the lungs and a blood test. This is a preliminary
procedure in order to be allowed to stay at a reception center, regardless of the length
of the stay (Asylverfahrensgesetz, § 62 Gesundheitsuntersuchung).
All the information that is gathered from the asylum seekers is required by several
institutions. However, in the past it was impossible to pass this information on from one
authority to another and registering an asylum seeker multiple times has not been
uncommon. A major cause of this problem has not only been the German data protection
policy but also the incompatible databases. (Hoffmann, 2016)
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4.1.2.2 Refugee-ID
Due to the issues with the registration of the asylum, a new Identity card for the asylum
seekers was introduced in February 2016. It is called “Ankunftsnachweis” which means
‘evidence of arrival’. This document is meant to simplify and accelerate the whole
registration process. This ‘passport’ helps authorities to have access to key data. It holds
an identification number, identity and contact data, fingerprints and the place of living.
Additionally, it includes information about the holders’ education and professional
qualifications in order to enable a fast employment. Since February the
“Ankunftsnachweis” is mandatory for asylum seekers in Germany (BAMF, 2015). It can
be issued during the initial reception or by the BAMF (Bundesamt für Migration und
Flucht).
4.1.2.3 New IT-system
So far, one of the biggest issues has been the exchange of the gathered information.
The standardized information from the “Auskunftsnachweis“ will therefore not only be
available on the ID but also in a centralized IT-system. With a Fast-ID system (based on
fingerprint recognition) which is now available in every initial reception, authorities will be
able to immediately tell if a person has already been registered or not (Die
Bundesregierung 2016). This way the authorities will not spent their time registering
asylum seekers multiple times and information about the applicants will be available to
the relevant institutions instantly. These are the Federal Office for Migration and
Refugees (Bundesamt für Migration und Flucht), the Reception Centers
(Aufnahmeeinrichtungen), the Foreigners' Authority (Ausländerbehörden), the Asylum
Seeker Support Authorities (Asylbewerberleistungsbehörden) and the Federal Labor
Office (Bundesagentur für Arbeit) (Bundestag 2016).
Figure 13: Asylum Seeker ID (Source: Deutscher Bundestag, 2016)
4.1.2.4 EASY-System
The EASY distribution System (first acquisition of asylum seekers’ system) is a databased system used by the BAMF (Federal Office for Migration and Refugees). It allows
the officials the equal distribution of the refugees over the sixteen federal states of
Germany. The key criterion of the EASY-System is the “Königsteiner Key” (see below),
but the EASY-System also takes into consideration the actual capacity of the reception
25
centers and their specializations. Not all branch offices of the BAMF deal with all
countries of origin (BAMF, 2015b).
4.1.2.5 Königsteiner Key
The “Koenigsteiner Key“ is a mathematical distribution tool for the government in
Germany. It was designed for an agreement between the federal states of Germany in
1949 to distribute the cost of the governmental research institutes like Max-Plank-society
and others over the sixteen federal states. The GWK (Joint Science Conference), a
governmental commission for education and research, calculate a new Königsteiner Key
every year. It is calculated with 2/3 tax income and 1/3 population of each state. The
operating numbers in tax and population are mostly from two to three years below (GWKBonn, 2016).
Today the Königsteiner Key is being used to distribute various things to the federal
states. It is also the key criterion in deciding about the number of the refugees each state
is to receive.
Figure 14: Distribution Königsteiner Key 2016 (Source: BAMF, 2016)
4.1.2.6 Transportation
For the reason that Germany is surrounded by other Dublin-rule abiding States, the
asylum seekers are not usually noticed when they cross the borders. Most of the asylum
seekers arrive to a reception center on their own. In normal circumstances there is no
organized transportation from the border to any reception center. (Hoffmann, 2016).
However, during the crisis so many asylum seekers crossed the border each day that
26
the federal police was not able to register everyone. Therefore, the government decided
to bring asylum seekers without registration directly to the reception centers. In
collaboration with the Deutsche Bahn, the government organized the transportation for
most of the asylum seekers that crossed the border in the South-East of Bavaria.
(Hoffmann, 2016). Chartered trains and buses transported the arrivals directly to the
reception centers. More complex routes were organized for the smaller reception centers
across the country. The Deutsche Bahn organized also a lot of additional help for the
asylum seekers, for example special counters, interpreters, and signposts in Arabian
language (Deutsche Bahn, 2015).
Financial assistance
It is often stated that Germany is too appealing to asylum seekers. This is why some
politicians such as the minister of interior Thomas de Maizière are calling for support in
the form of vouchers and non-cash benefits and others for cutting down the pocket
money for people arriving from the Balkan states. The Asylbewerberleistungsgesetz is
regulating the form and amount of support an asylum seeker receives in order to satisfy
their vital needs. This not only applies to asylum seekers but also to the applicant from
whom asylum has been denied and to those who have been granted a provisional
residence permission. While an asylum seeker is being sheltered in a shared
accommodation, a support in form of donations is only received. It is only in the later
process that the asylum seekers will receive cash support (also called pocket money).
(Spiegel 2015) Upon arriving at the first registration point, the asylum seekers are offered
new clothing and shoes, food and drinks (Metzlef, 2016). Another aspect that is very
costly is the transport of the Asylum seekers. Once they are registered their transport to
their relevant reception center is being organized for them and it is free (Hoffmann,
2016).
Details about the allowance are explained in chapter 5.2.
4.2
Finland
Main access points
4.2.1.1 The Finnish-Russian border
As an alternative to a perilous journey across the Mediterranean by boat, another
crossing for asylum-seekers has emerged: the Arctic Circle. Despite the cold
temperatures, growing numbers of migrants and asylum seekers are using the Russian
North to enter Finland. The faster and safer Arctic route has emerged as a viable
alternative for asylum-seekers to the rough seas that have claimed thousands of lives
crossing from Turkey to Europe. The Russian border town of Alakurtti is a growing
channel into Finland’s northernmost region Lapland, where many asylum-seekers have
entered by car. This has caused the Nordic countries to consider drastic measures in
response (Standish, 2016).
27
Figure 15: Border crossing to Finland (Source: Washington Post, 2015)
The Finnish-Russian border has not been a popular crossing throughout Europe’s
migration crisis. Only seven hundred asylum-seekers crossed from Russia in 2015, but
according to a recent report by the Finnish Border Guard the number could swell to more
than 7,500 in 2016. According to the report, nearly half of the arrivals from Russia in
2015 were Afghan citizens, who had been living in Russia for months or even years
before crossing into Finland. In total, around 32,000 asylum-seekers arrived in Finland
in 2015 (Standish, 2016)
To restrict the entry of the asylum seekers from Russia, a deal between Russian
President Vladimir Putin and Finnish President Sauli Niinistö was signed on March 22,
2016. This agreement restricts crossings at two popular entry points to Finland - Salla
and Raja-Jooseppi - to only Finnish, Russian and Belarusian citizens and their family
members, regardless of nationality, for one hundred and eighty days. The new
agreement came into effect on Sunday, April 10 at midnight (Yle, 2016).
According to a joint statement from the foreign and interior ministries, the restriction aims
to “prevent illegal and uncontrolled migration and related threats, and reduce
opportunities for crime. Another aim is to enhance the effectiveness of measures taken
in Finland and Russia in the past few weeks to combat illegal migration and its facilitation”
(Yle, 2016).
4.2.1.2 The Finnish-Swedish border
The northern Finnish city of Tornio forms a cross-border twin city with the town
of Haparanda in Sweden. As envisioned by the European Union, it was planned to be an
28
unguarded border where shoppers could move freely. However, due to a rapid rise in
the number of asylum seekers and migrants entering the country, The Finnish police
began checking people who arrived across the border from Sweden, starting in
September 2015 (Sputniknews, 2015).All asylum seekers that cross the border at Tornio
were brought to the Registration center, where applicants were registered and then
transferred to reception centers elsewhere in the country.
Asylum process
Registration of asylum seekers is a critical measure that is taking place in order to identify
individuals who are at risk or have special needs. The process helps to identify children
and those people who were separated from their families during crises and reunite them.
It is also done in order to record the number of people arriving into the country. In Finland,
the border guards are responsible for this task. However, in a situation of the asylum
seeker influx at the border, the task becomes impossible.
Before the refugee crisis started in autumn 2015, when only a small number of people
were arriving in Finland as asylum seekers, the process was swift. In these normal
circumstances the asylum seekers were directed to the nearest police station to apply
for asylum. The police usually contacts the nearest reception center and checked if they
have space for accommodation. In the case that there was no space in the reception
centers the police then called immigration office for help. The Police could also call
immigration office if there is a case of unaccompanied minor for assistance and
protection. Immigration is contacted under very acute and emergency situations only.
Under normal circumstances the immigration does not have anything to do with asylum
seekers at the initial reception stage. However, starting around August - September last
year (2015) when the refugee crisis became very intense and thousands of asylum
seekers started arriving to Finland, the immigration office intervened and created one
centralized office for asylum seekers registration, known as the Registration center in
Tornio.
At Tornio the asylum seekers were arriving from Sweden by train. Police officers were
waiting for them at the station and directing them to buses or directly to the Registration
center. The Registration center was set up around 400 m from the border. Basic
accommodation was also provided at the center. Depending on the number of asylum
seekers, they could stay from one to five days there, waiting to be registered (Harmonen,
2016).
During the autumn of 2015, asylum seekers arrived independently straight to Helsinki
from Lapland, as they assumed that they would automatically be able to be
accommodated in the Helsinki’s reception centers. They had a little knowledge on the
asylum procedure. The asylum seekers were able to register in Helsinki, however they
were sent anywhere in Finland where there was a place for them to be accommodated
while waiting for the asylum decision, even back to Lapland. The Registration center was
founded to stop this unnecessary and uncontrolled traffic and to register the arriving
people immediately at the border (Kaukiainen, 2016).
29
In September 2015 the influx was quite severe and almost 11,000 asylum seekers
arrived in Finland. This called for a collaboration for a joint operation at the border
between the immigration, police, the Red Cross and the border guards. Henceforth the
process of distributing the asylum seekers across the country was really fast and
required less time spent at the Registration center. The asylum seekers were arriving to
the Registration center where the police registered them and put them on the bus
provided. The asylum seekers would then get sent to the various reception centers
chosen by the Immigration Office. Starting in October 2015, when the influx slowed
down, the police started organizing interviews at the Registration center too. Then on the
asylum seekers were registered first, then they were sent to a reception center for few
days or couple of weeks. After this they were invited back to the Registration center for
the first basic interview, in which they were asked basic questions as in who they are,
where they are coming from, which routes they took, on what grounds were they seeking
asylum etc.
At the beginning of March 2016, the procedure changed again and now the police is only
doing the registration. All other interviews are held by the immigration office. This has
sped up the process of the asylum evaluation.
The Registration center in Tornio was closed in March 2016, because there were no
asylum seekers arriving to Tornio anymore. The refugee influx in Tornio slowed down
drastically starting mid-January 2016. The recent influx occurred at the Russian - Finnish
border.
4.2.2.1 Transportation to initial reception
Transportation is provided to asylum seekers from the border to a reception center. If
required, they are provided with an escort. In Finland, the police, the immigration officers
and the border guards are responsible for the organization of transportation to the asylum
seekers from the border to the registration and reception centers. When the trains full of
asylum seekers were arriving from Sweden to Tornio, the police was already there,
waiting at train station and guiding the asylum seekers to the Registration center.
In order to use the resources effectively during the process of the registration of asylum
seekers in September 2015, the police requested the Defense Forces to provide
assistance at the Registration center. The assistance team advised people on how to
move in the area, checks those entering and leaving the area, and assisted in
transporting asylum seekers from the Registration center to reception centers. The
members of the Defense Force operated in Tornio under the leadership of the police.
The immigration office organized the transportation from the Registration center. After a
group of asylum seekers were registered, the Immigration office called local bus
companies and rented buses from them to transport the asylum seekers to the reception
centers across the country. The immigration office decided where to send the busses
and made the decision based on the reception centers that were ready to receive asylum
seekers. In reality the busses were sent anywhere where there was available space for
the asylum seekers. Each bus had a capacity of carrying about 50 people.
30
Another reason for organizing the transport for the asylum seekers is that they might
need to travel to get to the interviews. Adults can move independently and can be taught
to move around with the public transportation. This is the case in Helsinki for example.
Some reception centers are not close to a bus stop but mainly the asylum seekers travel
by themselves using public transportation (Kaukiainen, 2016).
Financial assistance
In Finland, the asylum seekers are entitled to an allowance, which is intended to cover
some expenses, including food and clothing, but not accommodation. The
accommodation is free of charge in the reception centers. The allowance is based on
the basic supplementary social allowance granted to citizens, although the amount is
reduced by thirty percent for an adult and fifteen percent for a child due to the
accommodation and other services being provided in the reception center. Those living
outside the reception center also receive the reduced allowance. Asylum seekers are
not entitled to a child benefit or any other social benefits (Pakolaisneuvonta, 2016). The
details about the asylum seeker allowance in Finland are explained in chapter 5.6.
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5
Key Logistical Aspects of Reception Centers and Processes
Celina Ersch, Uljana Veresokin, Helena Lino de Correia, Aleksi Nurvo
In this chapter the single elements of German and Finnish reception centers including
accommodation, catering, supply, finance, organization of transports and contingency
planning are explained.
5.1
Germany
After their arrival, refugees have to go to the Regional Government Authority
(“Landesverwaltung”) where they have to register. The Regional Government Authority
is responsible for every Reception Center in Germany which works in cooperation with
the Federal Office of Migration and Refugees (“Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge
- BAMF”), the employment agencies and job centers. After the registration, refugees
have to make a request for asylum at the building of “BAMF”. If they get a positive
answer, it’s the task of “BAMF” to send this information including a list of names to the
reception center. Only because of this note, it’s now possible for the refugees to live in a
reception center. (Survey by Informationsverbund Asyl und Migration in February 2011)
In Germany there doesn’t exist any standard for the different reception centers, but there
are some standards to varying the degrees in regional legislation thanks to the State
Reception Acts (“Landesaufnahmegesetz”).
Key Logistical Aspects of Reception Centers
In the following, the single elements of German reception centers including
accommodation, catering, supply, finance, organization of transports and contingency
planning are explained.
Accommodation
In general, 3 types of accommodation for asylum seekers can be distinguished. Initial
reception centers, collective accommodation centers and decentralized
accommodation.
Initial Reception Centre
For a period of up to 6 months after the asylum applications are accepted, it is allowed
to stay in an initial reception center. Furthermore, asylum seekers from “safe countries
of origin” are obliged to stay in initial reception centers for the whole duration of their
procedures. The Federal States in Germany are required to establish and maintain the
centers. Each of the 16 German Federal States have own initial reception facilities. (Aida,
2016) Normally the centers are located near to a BAMF branch office and have the task
to accommodate the refugees in the initial reception period.
32
Collective Accommodation Centres
There exist as a rule that the refugees have to be accommodated in “collective
accommodation” centers, when the obligation to stay in the initial reception center ends.
(Focused Study of the German National Contact Point for the EMN, Andreas Müller)
accommodation centers are normally situated within the same Federal State as the initial
reception center to which the asylum seeker was sent for the first reception period. The
organization of accommodation and distribution of refugees within the same territory is
entitled by law. (Asylum Information Database, Types of Accommodation, Germany)
Decentralized Accommodation
For many municipalities the establishment of collective accommodation wasn’t efficient.
Especially between 2002 and 2007 there was a decrease of numbers of asylum
applications. As a result, a lot of collective accommodation centers were closed during
in this time. Furthermore, municipalities more often accommodate asylum seekers in
apartments. (Asylum Information Database, Types of Accommodation, Germany) In
addition, there exist people with a “tolerated stay” (Duldung) and groups of people who
have been granted a temporary residence permit. Many of the people in these groups
who have been staying in Germany for several years like it more to live in decentralized
accommodation than asylum seekers, because the application is still pending and the
government recommend it too.
The Federal States often use different regulations because there doesn’t exist
everywhere standards for the accommodation of asylum seekers. In spite of the general
regulations on accommodation standards in the initial reception centers, there are a lot
of irregularities reference to the required living space. (Müller, 2016)
Figure 16. Room in the Initial reception center Lebach (Source: Veresokin, 2016)
A typical room has 2 or 4 beds and some furniture for each refugee. In general, the
federal states provide 6m2 for such a room. Most of the centers prefer to accommodate
families or single woman in separate buildings, but in times of overcrowding it isn’t
possible to follow that policy. (BAMF, 2016)
33
There was a rise of numbers of asylum seekers in 2012 and 2013 in Germany. The
usage of individual apartments and housing containers was needed to create more living
places for new refugees. Some federal states responded by increasingly commissioning
companies and organizations, that means non-state actors should help in reference to
the accommodation. Overcrowding has also been reported as a problem for the following
years 2014 and 2015 (Guardian, 2015). In some centers they used temporary housing
as solution or they limited the duration of the stay for newly arrived asylum seekers. This
option was built to make room for the following next arrivals. Last year, in 2015 a lot of
refugees were sent to emergency shelters or to local accommodation before their
application for asylum was registered. But the second solution leads to higher demand
in decentralized housing and follow-up accommodation. The only possibility for a lot of
asylum seekers was to be accommodated in emergency shelters. There were a few
different places – tents, schools, office buildings or gyms (BAMF, 2016). In most of the
German reception centers where guidelines are available bath facilities have to be
shared from 10 to 12 persons. The facilities consist of toilets and shower rooms. But in
times of overcrowding, in some centers the ratio is worse than that. Cleaning of shared
space and bath facilities is job of external companies in the initial reception centers.
Supply
The organization in the reception centers regarding supply of catering, health care,
security and other services especially in times when an unexpected number of refugees
arrive is very though and decisions have to be made quickly (Gerhardt, 2016). Therefore
the initial reception centers get help from volunteering citizens and organizations such
as Deutsches Rotes Kreuz (In the following “German Red Cross”), Technisches
Hilfswerk (In the following “Technical Relief Organisation”) and fire department. How
everything is organized and financed will be explained based on the interviews with the
directors of the reception centers in Lebach and Birkenfeld.
5.1.6.1 Financing
Everything that has to do with the initial reception center is financed by the federal state
(Gerhardt, 2016).
5.1.6.2 Catering
Refugees have to be catered and supplied with goods and services in order to satisfy
their basic needs. Decisions who caters the initial reception centers are made on the
following criteria. The caterer has to be able to cook for hundreds of people and be
flexible. Last but not least the meals have to have a good taste. Once a day the refugees
get a warm and twice a day they get cold meals. Usually the chefs use spices and food
that the refugees know from their country of origin (Hoffmann, 2016). Usually the need
of catering big reception centers is advertised but in cases when hundreds of refugees
show up overnight -as it was the case summer 2015 when Germany reached the peak
with over 800 000 refugees-decisions who caters and supplies had to be done quickly.
In emergency cases like this legally assignment procedure are loosened. The Initial
reception center in Birkenfeld signed limited contracts with suppliers and caterers at the
34
beginning, so now when the situation got under control and structured they have the
possibility to advertise and get several offers and choose the best to improve
organization and to save money (Gerhardt, 2016). How much is actually spend for
catering refugee reception centers is not made public by caterers or public authorities.
One of the reasons is that in most cases it would be much cheaper if the refugees would
cater themselves outside the camp. Estimations talk about around 11,70€ per refugee
per day. The asylum-seekers who may make purchases and cook after their time in the
initial reception centers receive less cash for it than the caterer. The same caterer usually
serve canteens in schools and companies, but they get a higher revenue with the camps.
The food is nearly the same but the price they are getting differs enormously (Welt 2015).
5.1.6.3 Transport
To move from the reception center to other places refugees use public transportation.
But usually in Germany the reception centers are close to cities, so there are no big
logistical problems.
After asylum was accepted the initial reception center receives transfer lists and have to
organize buses to bring the refugees in the different municipalities. The buses are hired
from private companies and are chosen with the same procedure as with the other
services (catering and facility management etc.).Within the reception centers transport
for example to the doctors is organized by the German Red Cross. For other cases
people have to use public transportation. (Gerhardt, 2016).
5.1.6.4 Other Services
Asylum-seekers receive an amount for personal everyday needs. Additionally refugees
get right after their arrival basic equipment package, in particular toiletry and hygiene
article and clothes (Welt, 2015). Clothes and toys that were donated are sorted and
stored in a warehouse and given out to people in need. Sometimes- as it was the case
in Birkenfeld - the worth of clothes and products exceed the worth an asylum seeker has
the right to get according to the law (Gerhardt, 2016).
Social Services
5.1.7.1 Allowance
Each asylum seekers receives pocket-money that is paid on the basis of a federal law
and the asylum seeker benefit law which is adjusted every year (Gerhardt, 2016).
Single
Married
>18yrs with family
15-18 yrs
6-15 yrs
< 6 yrs
126,00€
113,90€
100,80€
70,90€
77,50€
73,70€
Table 1: Allowances provided for asylum seekers (Source: Veresokin, 2016)
35
5.1.7.2 Occupational & Educational Activities
In order to facilitate integration, the asylum seekers are offered German classes during
their stay in reception centers. These classes are mainly held by volunteers (Gerhardt,
2016). In Birkenfeld reception center, the children have the possibility to go to
kindergarten which is run by hired employees and volunteering staff. Furthermore, the
Birkenfeld center offers a recreational room for teenagers where they can play ping-pong
and pool. A gym and a soccer ground are planned to be opened in the near future. Events
like Women’s Day on the 8th March are also celebrated in the reception center (Gerhardt,
2016). The reception center in Lebach also offers a “café” and other facilities but in
comparison to Birkenfeld they offer little children visits at the local kindergarten to play
with local children (Hoffmann, 2016).
5.1.7.3 Health Care
There are several possibilities for medical services. There are medical offices in the
centers, “mobile” doctors and volunteers that drive to reception centers, and in case of
heavy illness, the asylum seekers are brought to external practices. Additionally, in
Lebach, the German Red Cross takes care of medical services at nights and at
weekends (Hoffmann, 2016).
In general, the entitlement for asylum seekers, who have made an asylum application
orientates to §§4 and 6 of the Asylbewerberleistungsgesetztes (AsylbLG). Depending on
the federal state, the amount is paid by health insurance vouchers or the electronic health
insurance card (Gesundheit für Geflüchtete, 2016).
All incoming asylum seekers are examined and if required, medicated in first admission
facilities against infection illnesses and other illnesses and injuries. Some illnesses and
injuries are treated in every center. In case of a difficult illness, the asylum seeker is
treated at the local medical practitioner or at a hospital.
Medical services include according to §4 paragraph 3 AsylbLG the officially
recommended protective inoculations, measures to the emergency care and acute care,
services for pregnancy and birth as well as medical check-ups - Furthermore refugees
get consultations about recommended vaccinations. If the refugee gets vaccinated
afterwards or not is based on his own will because in Germany vaccination is not
compulsory (Flüchtlinge in Hessen, 2016).
Contingency Planning
Every Initial reception center has a contingency plan. Employees have to be aware how
to act in emergency (Interview Günter Gerhardt, 26.04.2016).
Example Reception Facility in Lebach, Saarland: One night 1200 refugees were
expected and 4000 showed up. Tents from German Red Cross (winter resistant, with
floors and heaters) and toilet boxes were built up and lso the warehouse was used as
first solution to accommodate people. Although for now the number of refugees
decreased the reception center still keeps tents for contingency. The reception center of
Lebach is seen as a nationwide paradigm. The company secret is a good collaboration,
fearless incentive talent and to be on standby, to learn steady something new. The
36
special feature of the reception center in Lebach is the positioning of all responsible
institutions at one place (BAMF, regional government authority, Security Service, Job
Center). This placement makes possible to have a briefing every morning, to create fast
new ideas and suggestions for improvement. Furthermore the asylum process in Lebach
takes less time as people work in two shifts. The organization of Saarland’s reception
centers is an optimized system which acts as orientation for all other federal states in
Germany (Interview Dr. Hoffmann, 13.04.2016).
Depending on the amount of refugees in the centers, security services and police that
has to ensure peace between the big amount of people and sometimes with different
cultural backgrounds. Where Birkenfeld rely only on private security companies Lebach
uses both services security and police (Interview Dr. Hoffmann, 13.04.2016).
Regarding the Insurance, asylum seekers that come and live in the reception centers
don’t have any insurance against damage (Interview Günter Gerhardt, 26.04.2016). A
solution for life after reception center came up at the beginning of 2016 when the GVV
municipal assurance VVaG offered a private liability insurance for refugees and asylumseekers which can be concluded by the local authority districts as a collective contract.
The annual cost are 33. 60 euros for individuals and 38. 40 euros for families. For that
the town or local authority districts have to inform the assurance every six months about
the number of asylum-seekers / refugees accommodated (NOZ, 2015).
Additional Information
The German Red Cross plays a crucial role in the reception centers, as the volunteer
organization takes care of the medical services, the collection of clothes and other
physical donations, but as well the social services are guaranteed by them (Gerhardt,
2016).
5.2
Finland
Accommodation
In Finland the asylum decision process is a difficult and long process. During this process
that usually lasts for over six months asylum seekers cannot be left on their own.
Accommodation is part of reception services provided to the asylum seekers.
Accommodation is needed to give otherwise homeless people shelter in a new country.
Organizing accommodation is the state’s duty and the state buys the accommodation
services from external service providers such as private companies, non-government
organizations and also from municipalities. After asylum seekers have been registered
in the system of the Finnish immigration service, they are guided to the nearest reception
center that has enough space. (Kaukiainen 2016.)
In Finland the accommodation takes place in reception centers. Reception centers have
many shapes and sizes. Centers are usually established to accommodate large groups
of people. (Kaukiainen 2016). Reception centers are managed by the service providers.
Service providers rent the facility and organize the furniture and supplies needed for
housing people. There are reception centers all over Finland in major cities but also in
37
the countryside. Asylum seekers do not get to choose where they are sent to and they
are given a reception center place based on the current vacancy in centers.
Accommodation services are outsourced to external service providers mainly because
the refugee crisis is a major political question. As an example, the democratic decision
making in municipalities is a long and complicated process. Deciding about the opening
of a municipal reception center can take years. Companies and NGOs have much more
flexible decision making process and they can proceed and adapt quickly. (Kaukiainen
2016). In Finland, the major accommodation service provider is the Finnish Red Cross.
Also some companies like Luona Oy and many municipalities operate reception centers.
They have their own processes and own services and as the Finnish Red Cross is a nongovernment organization with a high number of volunteers and Luona Oy is a private
company and part of international Barona Group Corporation.
Reception centers are dealing with a lot of different kind of logistical challenges.
Establishing phase and operating phase are facing very different kind of logistical issues.
Establishing a new reception center requires transportation of furniture, office materials
and building materials. Operating phase includes logistics for food supply, donations,
sheets and duvet covers and other supplies, and of course people. Organizing these
logistics varies between different reception centers according to their location and also
between different accommodation service providers. Reception centers manage some
logistics by themselves but transportation is mostly outsourced. (Kaukiainen 2016.)
According to the Act on the reception of persons applying for international protection and
on the identification of and the aid to victims of trafficking in human beings 3rd chapter
13§ (Laki kansainvälistä suojelua hakevan vastaanotosta sekä ihmiskaupan uhrin
tunnistamisesta ja auttamisesta 3 luku 13§) the reception centers should cover the
following services:
-
Accommodation
Reception allowance
Social services
Health care Services
Translation services
Occupational and Educational Activities
Food supply or increased reception allowance
5.2.1.1 Reception Centres
After spending a couple of days in the Registration center, the asylum seekers were
allocated into reception centers across the country where they will wait for the asylum
decision from six to eight months. The applicants can be directed to different centers
depending on gender, age, whether or not asylum seekers have family, and need for
detention (Sivula, 2016).
38
In case an asylum seeker’s identity or travel route to Finland is unclear they are
forwarded to a detention unit in the Metsälä region in Helsinki where they cannot leave
until the situation is sorted out (Finnish Immigration Service , 2016).
At the beginning of February, Finland had two hundred and twenty-two reception centers
(Wikipedia®, 2016), of which one hundred and forty-six were regular centers, and
seventy-six were special housing units for unaccompanied minors between sixteen and
seventeen years old (Finnish Immigration Service , 2016).
5.2.1.2 Asylum centre management
In principle the reception centers are a responsibility of Migri, the Finnish Immigration
Service, which provides the resources necessary to open and maintain the reception
centers (Sivula, 2016). Moreover, Migri delegates the task of setting and running the
reception centers to a third party. The main parties running the centers are the Finnish
Red Cross (one hundred and eight), Luona (seven), the Finnish municipalities (one
hundred and six) and the Finnish state (one) (Wikipedia®, 2016).
5.2.1.3 Asylum centres distribution
Due to the lack of available information and the closing of forty-three centers in 2016, it
was difficult to sort out the distribution of those 222 centers among the four different
parties mentioned above. Nevertheless, with the data available for November 2015 and
the interviews with the red cross, Luona and Migri, it was possible to get an approximate
estimation of the distribution. The result can be seen in table 2.
Municipalities
48%
SPR
49%
SPR
Luona
3%
Luona
Municipalities
Table 2: Finnish Asylum Center Management, (Source: Authors, 2016)
Luona had seven centers during interview (April 2016), and now it has eight centers (May
2016) (Konttinen, 2016). Luona Oy is a private company that provides social services,
residential solutions and health care to both private customers and the state of Finland
(Luona Oy, 2016). Their specialty is life and crisis management, accommodation for
39
elderly, rehabilitee patients, homeless and now the asylum seekers. Regarding the
asylum seekers, the role of Luona is both to manage the asylum centers and to
implement an integration plan for the refugees for the next ten years together with the
Finnish government (Luona Oy, 2016). Luona is part of the Barona Group, which is the
biggest Human Resources Company in Finland. Forenom Accommodation Services
(Majoituspalvelu Forenom Oy) is also part of Barona Group. These three connections
were strategic for Migri when selection Luona to manage their reception centers. In
practice these connections work as follows: Luona procures accommodation solutions
from Forenom, while Barona is developing a strategy on the employment of the asylum
seekers and refugees (Sivula, 2016).
Municipalities: Twelve municipalities and one city are running the reception centers in
Finland (Wikipedia®, 2016). These are:
1. Helsinki
8. Oravais
2. Joutseno
9. Oulu
3. Jyväskylä
10. Suonenjoki
4. Kajaani
11. Siilinjärvi
5. Lappajärvi
12. Vaasa (City)
6. Kotka
13. Viitasaari
7. Merikarvia
Figure 17: Reception center locations in Finland (Source: Wikipedia®, 2016)
Provided Services
5.2.2.1 Facilities
Reception center facilities come from various sources, including office buildings, inactive
hospitals, school or apartment buildings. The biggest center can support seven hundred
inhabitants (Kaukiainen, 2016). The procurement procedure of the facilities depends on
the institution that is managing the centers.
40
Red Cross and Municipalities have access to inactive public facilities like schools,
hospitals and retirement houses and can easily transform them into reception centers.
In fact, this solution proved to be more efficient than office buildings, because the
structures were already designed to support living-in conditions and therefore were
requiring less time and capital for setting up a center (Kaukiainen, 2016).
Luona procures accommodation solutions from Forenom, who provides the buildings to
the asylum centers. Forenom utilizes their own buildings as well as buildings owned by
private owners or building companies. Forenom then furnishes the facilities and takes
care of maintenance and cleaning. The selection is like any other procurement search,
where landlords send their offers and Forenom compares prices and makes an
evaluation whether or not the building is suitable for living-in. Next the price is negotiated
and insurance and other services organized. Finally, the deal is closed (Määttä, 2016).
Migri is responsible for financing all aspects of the asylum seeker logistics, including
transport, accommodation, supplies, security measures and extra expenses. Regarding
the reception centers, Migri and the institution in charge agree on a budget that covers
the whole package. Extra costs are subject to negotiations. Both the Red Cross and
Luona are not financed through donation or charity (Määttä, 2016).
5.2.2.2 Food provisions
When dealing with humanitarian logistics, the food provisions has proved to be the most
critical issue. The provisioning varies according to the asylum center structure. So far,
there has been five ways of supplying food (Sivula, 2016):
1)
If the center does not have a kitchen:
a. Asylum seekers are given an allowance of approximately 340 euros to buy their
own food;
b. The center hires a catering service;
c. If the asylum center is an office building and has a restaurant, the restaurant
services are hired.
2)
If the center has a kitchen:
a. The center can provide the ingredients and the asylum seekers cook
themselves;
b. The center can provide the ingredients and hire a chef.
Food is bought from a large wholesaler. Catering services are selected by price and
capacity to cook for a large number of people. Chefs are selected via normal recruiting
process (Sivula, 2016).
5.2.2.3 Staff
Upon the beginning of the crisis, Luona had only five employees. Today they have three
hundred (Sivula, 2016). Likewise, the Red Cross hired three hundred and thiry people to
41
run the reception centers (Kaukiainen, 2016). The job positions include: asylum center
director, manager, assistant, receptionist, security, chef, coaching, nurse, cleaner and
others.
Volunteers are employed in different ways by the Red Cross and Luona. The Red Cross
has a more active role on the daily services (kitchen and cleaning), and in establishing
reception centers in autumn 2015 (Kaukiainen, 2016). On the other hand, Luona does
not recruit volunteers as they usually come by their own initiative. Their centers were
designed not to depend on volunteer labor force, nevertheless there are over one
hundred of them coming every week. Each volunteer is allowed one hour visit per week
to offer training and leisure activities (Sivula, 2016).
5.2.2.4 Cleaning
The cleaning of the centers is done daily. The Red Cross has their own cleaning staff
while Luona hires the cleaning services from Forenom, that has its own cleaning team.
In addition, the asylum seekers receive training at the centers on basic daily duties like
cleaning but they have a free choice to help in the centers’ maintenance. Those who are
actively helping at the centers have their work recognized and may benefit from job
opportunities in the future (Määttä, 2016).
5.2.2.5 Clothing
The severe weather conditions make clothing a key aspect of human logistics in Finland.
Nevertheless, it has been the least of the problems due to a great amount of clothing
donations and the fact that the majority of the asylum seekers in Finland come from Iraq,
which is a relatively wealthy country, so most brought their clothes with them or can
afford to buy new ones. A part of the monthly allowance given for those asylum seekers
in need, ninety euros directed for clothing (Sivula, 2016).
5.2.2.6 Security Services
The reception centers procure security services from other companies. Further details
will be described at the Contingency Planning and Security section.
5.2.2.7 Social Services
In Finland, the social services, are normally provided by the municipalities. Each citizen
has an own home-municipality in which they are registered. Since asylum seekers are
not considered residents in Finland, and therefore do not have a home-municipalities
(Kaukiainen 2016), the reception centers are in charge of offering social services for
them. The social services are mandatory by law. The social workers can be the center’s
own staff, hired from a third party service or volunteers. The service comprehends
guidance and translation through bureaucratic processes, counseling on social
problems, enabling performance abilities and well-being (The Finnish immigration
service) as well as mental health care. Furthermore, counsellors help the refugees to
find their own apartments (Auramo Reception center, 2016).
42
The social services are an important part of the asylum seekers’s integration into a
different country, with different rules and language. This helps them to become a part of
the Finnish social system as independent citizens in the future (Migri, 2016).
Sometimes social services are not enough to deal with asylum seekers’ frustrations and
the anxiety caused by the long waiting. In those cases the health care services may step
in. Other issues considering social services are mostly related to limited amount of
resources and time (Migri, 2016).
Asylum seekers are entitled to translation services to help with their decision process,
legal questions and other tasks. (Migri, 2016.) Finding the professionals who can speak
the required language can problematic for the reception centers.
5.2.2.8 Occupational and Educational Services
An integration plan is being designed by the government together with Luona social
services, the Red Cross and Barona HR. The plan seeks to fully integrate the accepted
refugees in the country via work and education in a period of ten years (Sivula, 2016).
The project is still on a planning stage but it envisions basic education, professional
training and recruiting. Luona is offering the basic training on everyday activities, Finnish
customs and education (Sivula, 2016). The Red Cross is developing an internship
program to enable the refugees to enter the job market. Barona HR is providing the
means for refugee recruitment (Pitkälä, 2016) and the Finnish government is covering
salary expenses for the refugees recruited on behalf of the companies (Sivula, 2016).
At the moment the asylum seekers have the possibility to work even before the asylum
decision. If their documents are in order they can start working three months after their
arrival, and if not, they will be able to work after six months. While the centers are
providing training on daily tasks, the volunteers are offering learning and recreational
activities like language courses.
Although asylum seekers can look for work, the opening of bank account is quite difficult.
The work permit costs 20 euros and it can be paid in cash only at a bank. The bank
branches that provide cash services are very rare nowadays.
5.2.2.9 Health Care
In Finland, health service is free and provided to the citizens by the municipality in which
they are registered. As previously mentioned, the asylum seekers are not yet considered
residents until a legal decision made restrict their access to public hospitals, therefore
the asylum centers hire the health services from private clinics. Each center has their
own nurse for the initial check-ups. In case that of serious treatment is required, the
patient is sent to a private clinic. If contagious diseases are identified, residents are
allocated to a different facility to prevent the spread of infections (The City of Helsinki,
2016).
43
5.2.2.10 Allowance
Reception allowance is granted to asylum seekers so they can financially manage to
support their everyday life. Reception allowance is not a solid fund and the amount of
allowance varies. Persons own wealth and income is one contributing factor. The biggest
thing that affects the amount of allowance is food. If the reception center offers food
services, then the allowance is significantly smaller. Other factors that are taken into
account are person’s age and family situation. Detailed amounts of reception allowance
can be found on table 3.
The basic component of the monthly reception
allowance
No meal
service
Meals at
reception center
A single parent, living alone
Other persons over 18 years
A child who lives with his or her family
An unaccompanied minor under 16 years
An unaccompanied minor between 16 and 17 years
314,91 €
266,04 €
200,89 €
92,30 €
76,01 €
59,72 €
27,15 €
48,86 €
Table 3: Asylum seeker allowance (Source: Migri, 2016)
Transportation of asylum seekers
Reception centers require logistics to be able to operate their actions. However, the
different phases of operating the reception centers need very different kind of logistics.
For example, logistics concerning the establishing of a new reception center and logistics
concerning the operating of reception centers with residents are very different. Guideline
for reception centers is that most of the logistics are outsourced to some logistics
company. Some small self-handled delivery traffic exists so the life in reception center
could be run smoothly.
In the establishing stage, the opening reception center needs to organize transportation
for housing furniture, office furniture and sometimes also building material. This need of
transportation varies between different locations. For example, the Finnish Red Cross
has established reception centers in places where these furniture and facilities have
been more or less ready. The situation is very different if reception centers that have
been established in old offices for example. These bigger-scale logistics are
systematically outsourced to logistics companies (Kaukiainen 2016.). Logistically, the
best location for a new reception center would be in a facility that is originally built for
accommodation purposes.
In the reception centers that have food catering, a cook prepares meals for tenants. In
this situation the food supply logistics are required. A good example of efficient solutions
is the Finnish Red Cross Auramo reception center. There is a lunch restaurant in the
same facility, so the center has a deal that the restaurant provides catering services and
takes care of everything food related. Then there are places where the food is not an
arranged service, so the asylum seekers cook their own meals.
44
Other quite big cause of traffic is donations. People have donated a lot of things to
reception centers. Clothes have been very popular items to donate and it has caused big
challenges to Red Cross. Red Cross had to find a new facility just to do the sorting and
qualifying of the clothes. Also Luona Oy has received donated clothes and there has
been an oversupply in there as well (Sivula 2016). People also donate other things like
sofas, chairs and tables and even TVs. However, donators usually do not want to do the
deliveries themselves. Red Cross reception centers have some delivery cars for the
purpose to gather donated items from the nearby area. Donators are still encouraged to
do the deliveries themselves. (Kaukiainen 2016.)
Reception center logistics also include the transport of people, this being to police
hearings and personal commuting for example. This is in asylum seekers own hands.
Asylum seekers get guidance on how to use public transportation system and also help
with the navigation. Some centers provide a few bicycles for the tenants. Other centers
are located further away and there is no public transportation or it is very poor. In these
cases, the center can arrange some customer traffic for asylum seekers for a small fee.
Transportation is also required for the bed linen and other supply that reception center
needs. Overall, the transportation is mostly outsourced to logistics companies but some
small delivery is arranged by the reception centers themselves. The establishing phase
and operating phase logistics are similarly arranged although the logistics are different.
Transportation is mainly in the hands of logistics professionals or regarding personal
movement, on the asylum seekers own hands
Contingency planning
Safety in the reception centers can be regarded as security or contingency measures.
The former is present on the every-day life of the centers, and the latter are strategic
measures for emergency situations.
Security measures consist of sorting asylum seekers in most suitable locations according
to family situation: families, unaccompanied children and minors, gender etc., and entry
control, meaning that only identified and allowed individuals have access to the centers
via identification cards or pre-booked visits. Residents at the centers are free to come
and go as they please as the reception center is their home. However, there are common
rules to keep order in the place, such as silence between the hours ten pm and six am.
Security services cover the reception personnel, security personnel, camera system, fire
alarm system, fire doors, locks and door code systems (Sivula, 2016).
In case of an emergency, Luona and the Red Cross have a list of landlords that are ready
to provide new buildings. The shortest time for setting up a center was eight hours and
two days respectively. The government has also procured extra barracks that should be
enough to accommodate a very large number of asylum seekers in case of a sudden big
influx (Sivula, 2016).
During an interview, Jaakko Ihalainen, the Rental Manager at Forenom, was able to
identify four types of insurance used in the Finnish real estate market. Out of these four,
three are relevant to the refugee logistics studies. The insurances vary according to the
liability (Ihalainen, 2016) as shown below:
45
1)
Building Insurance - Provided by the landlord.
The building belongs to a company owned by a landlord. This company buys full
coverage service (Täushario). Every building in Finland has this insurance. It covers any
accidental damages in the building that might affect the tenants (Ihalainen, 2016).
Insurance terms:
Liability: responsibility is on the building company.
What is covered: building and system (any physical damages, accidents, e.g. pipe
damages)
- Not covered: other issues like unpaid rent.
2)
Responsibility Insurance – Provided by the real Estate Company (Forenom).
Insurance terms:
Liability: 50/50 - Forenom takes responsibility for accidental damages only. Nonaccidental damages must be covered by the person/company who caused the
damage. E.g. leaving the tap open and flooding the apartment, causing damage to
the neighbour’s apartment. In this case, the damage was caused by customer’s
negligence and the customer must cover the costs of repairing the damage
(Ihalainen, 2016).
What is covered: accidental damages caused by:
Forenom’s employees
Forenom’s tenants
Not covered: damage for negligence.
3)
Reception center’s Insurance: Golden Contracts
Is the same Responsibility Insurance used by Forenom but it is called it golden contract
because Forenom takes care of all income losses for their landlords. E.g. if the residents
of the reception center are sloppy and cause damage to the building, Forenom takes
care of fixing it and covers all the costs incurred on behalf of their landlords. That is made
possible because Migri re-funds Forenom for damages caused by asylum seekers
(Ihalainen, 2016).
Insurance terms:
Liability: one hundred percent covered by Forenom
What is covered: accidental damages, broken furniture, maintenance, problem
solving, covering income loss
The insurance type used vary in each reception center. There are different types of
landlords providing the building and different types of insurance being used as some
building companies prefer using their own building insurance (Ihalainen, 2016).
46
6
Logistical Aspects after the Acceptance of the Asylum Application
Aavik Aneken, Kast Christian, Altin Benjamin, Barachino Helena, Zieder Amelie
6.1
Germany
Asylum Process
In Germany, the BAMF (Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge - Federal office for
migration and refugees) is officially in charge for the acceptance or denial of an asylum
application. The process consists of an interview of the asylum seeker, and a criteria
catalogue needs to be fulfilled.
The applications’ processing time is sorted by the application’s date, not the urgency or
country of origin. During the interview the asylum seeker is required to explain the reason
for leaving his/her own place of origin and the reason behind the arrival in Germany.
If the reasons explained in the interview are plausible and other criteria are fulfilled, the
asylum will be granted. The next steps will involve the asylum seeker being integrated
into a municipality. The time of the asylum application process in Germany is highly
dependent on the federal state. In 2015 the time has decreased to five point three months
on average. With regard to the process time the Saarland office is well positioned in
comparison with the German federal states and can therefore be seen as a role model.
In Saarland region the processing time was three point six months in 2015 (Tagesschau,
2015). However, the Saarland BAMF pursues the goal of completing the application for
asylum within 2 days in the near future. At the moment the processing time requires 2-3
weeks, a significant improvement since 2015. There are many reasons for the long
duration of the procedure. The BAMF is mainly dealing with the asylum seeker’s country
of origin and the federal states in which they are sent. For asylum seekers originating
from Syria and Northern Iraq it is possible to shorten the asylum procedure (Interview
Dr. Hoffmann, 13.04.2016).
Generally the asylum seeker has to file his application in person at a branch office of the
BAMF. In the Saarland region the office responsible for it is Lebach. In regards to this
appointment the department invites a language mediator in order to avoid language
barriers. During the application process the asylum seeker is informed about his rights
and obligations regarding the asylum procedure. The most important information
regarding the asylum procedure are handed over in the asylum seeker’s mother tongue.
BAMF’s duty is to open a file containing the asylum seekers’ personal data. All asylum
seekers who have reached the age of fourteen are registered by fingerprints and
photographs. These measures can determine whether the asylum seeker had previously
stayed in Germany (under a different name) and whether another European State is
responsible for the application procedure.
The following figure (taken in the BAMF branch in Lebach) shows the questionnaire that
asylum seekers have to fill in order to apply for asylum:
47
Figure 18: Asylum Seeker’s Questionnaire (Source: BAMF)
After the application process the asylum seeker is given an identity document allowing
the residence in Germany. Such document must always be carried and be shown to the
police in case of an identity check. With each application the following rights are
proposed automatically on the basis of the Asylum Procedure Act (Asylverfahrensgesetz
– AsylVfG):
•
•
•
•
International protection (§1 section one, number two)
Refugee protection (§3 section one)
Subsidiary Protection (§4 section one)
Eligibility for asylum (article 16a, section one Constitutional Law)
If the purpose of international protection and the recognition as entitlement to asylum are
ruled out, the BAMF decides whether there are prohibitions of deportation according to
the residence law (§60 sectionfive or section seven AufenthG). In case Germany is the
responsible country in terms of examining the case, the asylum seeker is asked about
his personal reasons to flee. The interview is carried out by an employee of the federal
office.
The decision on the asylum application is issued in writing in form of a notice from the
federal office. The decision contains a declaration and is delivered with directives
concerning the law. Regarding the application’s decision the individual fate is decisive.
If the authority deciding on the application requires more information regarding the
asylum seeker for further investigations, the information center for asylum and migration
can provide the required data. This departments makes an extensive database available
(MILo). Furthermore the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) provides a large
amount of information regarding the decision on asylum. In terms of examination of
48
documents and pieces of evidence the decision makers can fall back on the following
data: language and text analysis, medical and other reports, contact persons of the
federal foreign office and employees of the federal office that is deployed abroad.
With regard to the decision, there are different possibilities in the decision-making
process, which imply different consequences. These possibilities are listed in the table
below:
Decision
Residence Permit and
Duration
Settlement Permit
Allocating of the refugee
status (§3 AsylVfG)
Residence permit for
three years
Settlement permit is granted
after three years, if there was
no written cancellation
Allocation of subsidiary
protection (§4 AsylVfG)
Residence permit for
one year
Extension for two years
possible
Settlement permit is granted
after seven years
Determination of a
prohibition of deportation
(§60 section five and
seven AufenthG)
Residence permit for at
least one year
Settlement permit is granted
after seven years
Table 4: Different Possibilities on Asylum’s Decision (Source: BAMF, 2014)
In case of no preconditions for the all protection classes, the asylum seeker will receive
a negative decision including the request for leaving the country and the threat of
deportation (BAMF, 2014). More information on this can be found in the section
“Rejected Asylum Application” of this chapter.
Landesverwaltung Saarland
The state Saarland is one of the smallest states in Germany. In order to allocate the
asylum seekers among the different states in a fair manner during the refugees’ crisis,
the “Königsteiner Schlüssel” was defined Glossar BAMF (Königsteiner Schlüssel,
21.04.2016). According to the Königsteiner, Saarland receives around one point two
percent of all asylum seekers coming to Germany. Since October 2013, 26,000 asylum
seekers came to Saarland, half of them were relocated into different states due to the
Königsteiner Key (Hoffmann, 2016).
Preliminary Decisions
To diminish the number of asylum seekers in the reception centers, the BAMF makes
preliminary decisions on the asylum seekers that can be integrated immediately. Those
are asylum seekers with better possibilities to stay in Germany. The criteria for the
immediate integration is simply the country of origin and the safety of the country of
origin. Although these countries are listed, this list is continuously altered and not
49
standardized for all Europe (Glitz, 28.01.2016). As Syria is a war zone at the moment,
Syrian asylum seekers fall under the criteria “origin - unsafe country” and are always
accepted (Hoffmann, 2016).
A country can be designated as a safe country if it is capable of proving that the
inhabitants do not have to be afraid of persecution and that the state itself intends to
protect the public against non-governmental persecution. This means that a legislation
is existing in order to protect the population, that it is accessible for everyone and that it
is applied at the same time. If a country is classified as a safe country, the legal
presumption is that there is no risk of persecution. In Germany the following countries
are regarded as safe countries:
-
EU member states
Albania
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Ghana
Kosovo
Macedonia
Montenegro
Senegal
Serbia
If the BAMF receives a request from a person originating from one of these countries,
the asylum seeker gets the opportunity to produce evidence justifying that he or she is
faced persecution in the country of origin. But if this material is not sufficient, the
application for asylum is rejected (BAMF, 2016b).
Allocations into Regional Associations
After an asylum seek is granted, the asylum seekers will get integrated into the
municipality, if they are not already integrated. The BAMF informs the reception center,
so that the responsible workers there can inform the next proper authority. This will either
be the capital of the state (in this case Saarbrücken) or one of the regional associations.
In total there are six regional associations.
The amount of asylum seekers a party will take is also determined through the
“Königsteiner Schlüssel” (Saarländische Aufenthaltsverordnung, 21.04.216). Since
October 2013, the region of Saarland provided 2.260 asylum seekers with apartments
and houses in the regional federation Saarbrücken, and a similar number only in the
state capital (Schaumlöffel and Benedyczuk, 2016). Whether the regional associations
or the state capital will accommodate people, the process is fundamentally the same.
Integration into Municipalities
The granted asylum seekers will be accommodated into different municipalities. Factors
for a fair allocation are the size of the municipality in terms of inhabitants and area, and
the household budget of the town or city financed by taxes (Infomappe Gemeinde
Quierschied, 2015).
50
Housing
The municipality will provide houses or apartments that are either owned by the
municipality itself or will rent houses or apartments located in the city and the catchment
area. The apartments need to be habitable (heating and a functional water connection)
and must not exceed a certain budget, which is individually defined by the financial
possibilities of every municipality (Preiser, 2016). It is also possible that the asylum
seekers have a direct tenancy agreement with the tenant. However such method is not
recommended due to high fluctuation of migrants within the states (Infomappe Gemeinde
Quierschied, 2015).
After the asylum seekers are integrated into municipalities, they are required to contact
and register at the job-centre, so that they would receive social benefits until they will be
able to start working. Social benefits are granted according to family status and legal age
(Grundleistung nach dem Urteil des BverfG, 2012). Therefore it is also mandatory for the
asylum seekers to open a bank account in Germany. In order to do so, a temporary
resident permit and a registration card is needed (Infomappe “Wegweiser durch die
Behörden”, 2015).
Once an apartment is found the municipality furnishes it with voluntary donated or with
newly bought furniture, or both. The tenancy agreements are usually made between the
municipality and the house owners and are held until the tenants begin to work and do
not need social benefits any longer, or will move to another municipality or state.
Associated costs such as electricity will require an additional contract with the power
supplier. Such contracts are agreed between the municipality and the supplier. Other
services such as internet connection are not provided by the municipality, and contracts
with such service providers need to be made autonomously by the asylum seekers and
payed with the social benefits they receive monthly (Preiser, 2016).
Financing
The obligation for costs of admission and accommodation for asylum seekers relies
within each of the sixteen German federal states. The costs that arise with the integration
and housing for the municipalities will be compensated by the state with a lump sum.
This sum is made by the very individual costs for each accommodation and needed
services. In principle it is set that around fifteen to thirty percent of the costs need to be
covered by the municipality, while the rest will be refunded by the state (Infomappe
Gemeinde Quierschied, 2015).
Services after Integration
6.1.8.1 Health care
In Germany there is a governmental health insurance that provides for every citizen, as
long as they do not have their own private insurance. The costs are partly covered by
the employer, partly by the employees that are living in Germany (“Die Gesetzliche
Krankenversicherung im Überblick, 2016). Since the asylum seekers do not partake in
these payments, the government is very strict on who will be able to see a doctor
(Preiser, 2016). Thus far it is defined that every asylum seekers is entitled to one health
51
insurance certificate per calendar quarter from the social welfare office (“Krank im Asyl”,
2015). As long as there is no emergency - like a severe infection (flu etc.), people seeking
asylum have to get audited by a medical health officer, to diminish unnecessary costs
for the municipality (Preiser, 2016).
Figure 19: Example for an insurance certificate (Source: Infos23, 2016)
6.1.8.2 Language Courses
It is mandatory for every granted asylum-seeker to take so called “Integration-courses”.
The course provider gets three point one euros for each participant. The participant
needs to personally contribute one point fifty-five euros per lesson. That makes a total of
1023 euros for six hundred and sixty lessons - average (BAMF, 2016b). These courses
include language-courses that are designed to train German language skills in the work
field, child care, shopping, leisure and social contact, health and hygiene as well as the
usage of media and living. The language course contains of a minimum of six hundred
to a maximum of nine hundred hours depending on the progress of the student.
Furthermore the integration courses contains an “Orientation-Course” that teaches the
students about the legal system, history and culture of Germany, types of cohabitation,
rights, obligations and values in Germany. Before the course the asylum seeker will need
to do an assessment test to identify his/her own learning level. At the end of the course
every participant will need to do a free-of-charge final examination (BAMF, 2013).
6.1.8.3 Voluntary Work and Integration Organizations
In order to meet the individual needs of the people that fled from their homes to find
themselves in an environment extremely different from their home country, there are
plenty of support-organizations, such as the ILO (“Integrationslotsen”). Those are
individuals who are helping with a first orientation after integration into the municipality like necessary authority ways, signing into schools, kindergartens and integration
courses. The ILO’s therefore should be seen as a “close associate” who becomes
52
familiar with the asylum seeker through helping out with administrative tasks and through
the findings of the asylum seekers’ talents and skills in order to integrate them into worklife more rapidly. The learnt competencies are informed either to the MBE
(Migrationsberatung für Erwachsene) or the JMD (Jugendmigrationsdienst), depending
on the age of the asylum seekers (Infomappe Gemeinde Quierschied, 2015). The MBE
is an organization that concentrates on the needs of adult asylum seekers (people that
are twenty-seven years old or more). The organization’s service can be provided up to
three years, depending on the individual. The JME is part of the federal youth care and
provides for people between the age of twelve and twenty-seven. The LIB
(Landesintegrationsbegleitung), is an organization that works with people who migrated
a longer time ago and still have problems to get integrated properly, may it be language
difficulties, work etc. (Infomappe Gemeinde Quierschied, 2015).
6.1.8.4 Volunteers
Volunteers have a crucial role in the handling of the asylum seekers’ flow. Starting from
support and care during the integration process in the form of language courses and
accompaniment to official businesses, to donations of money, clothes, food and furniture,
the volunteers are seen as a very important entity (Infomappe Gemeinde Quierschied
2015). There are also semi-professionals who can provide more intensive support, like
translators, voluntary paramedics, midwives or firefighters, or nursery school teachers
that are needed at the refugee camp and organized by the state administration office
(Hoffmann, 2016). For the reason that the situation in the refugee camps and later on
during the integration process can vary from person to person, one cannot foresee the
need and possibility for participation of volunteers - who are appointed spontaneously.
In general, every voluntary participation is appreciated and can be done by everyone.
Small tasks such as transport services to doctors, groceries or authorities, integration
into the neighborhood or clubs, or support during the language learning, can be done by
anyone (Infomappe Gemeinde Quierschied, 2015).
6.1.8.5 Working asylum seekers
In principle asylum seekers are not allowed to work for the first three months after their
arrival. Excluded from this rule are internships in exceptional cases. Charitable work is
always excluded from this rule (Infomappe Gemeinde Quierschied, 2015). To be able
to work, asylum seekers need to be registered at the German job-center. This becomes
mandatory when integrated into a municipality, which implies that the asylum seeker
has prospects to remain in the country (Infosheet Arbeitslosengeld II, 2016). Asylum
seekers coming from safe countries, like Albania, Ghana or Serbia need to live in the
refugee camps for the whole asylum process and are therefore not allowed to work
(Zugang zum Arbeitsmarkt, 2016). The organization SABENE helps to identify and to
foster talents, skills and former trainings of asylum seekers, in order to make possible
for them to do the same job in Germany that they did in their home country (Akteure
Sabene, 2016, Hoffmann, 2016).
53
Rejected Asylum Application
If the application for asylum is rejected by the BAMF, the person seeking asylum receives
a letter containing a request to leave the country and an announcement of deportation if
he does not follow the arrangement. The asylum seeker will have usually thirty days to
leave the country in order to avoid deportation (BAMF, 2016b). Hereby, the term
“Deportation” refers to the transport of the party under obligation from the
accommodation to the airport or the border crossing point. The asylum seeker has the
right to take action against the decision by appealing to the administrative court. The
appeal must be submitted within two weeks, in some cases within one week. The court
will then need to check the decision taken by the federal office.
Another reason for a deportation order is the delinquency of an asylum seeker. If one
commits a crime, there is a risk of being deported. In such case the authorities will decide
on the deportation. Their decision depends on the criminal offence and the punishment.
Essentially, an asylum applicant is deported if he is sentenced to more than three years
imprisonment or if he had smuggled other immigrants into the country. In case of drugs
offences or breach of the peace, already a period of imprisonment of two years are
sufficient for being deported. Nevertheless, the authorities are also allowed to deport
asylum seekers for some other reasons. The Federal Criminal Police Office and the
police in the federal states have created an overview showing that asylum seekers
display a delinquent behavior as often as comparative groups of the local population.
The reasons for deportation are stated by the law called “AufenthG” (Aufenthaltsgesetz).
One of the most important paragraphs for the deportation is §71 article five of this law.
This paragraph states that the police in the federal states is responsible for executing
the deportation and the enforcement of the obligation of leaving the country according to
§12 article three AufenthG. Furthermore, it is the task of the police to arrest the asylum
seekers and to propose the imprisonment.
All issues explained in this chapter are based on § 13 (Application for Asylum) and § 14
(Application for Permit) of the AufenthG. This law and the information provided by the
state chancellery can be read in the appendix under the name “Basic Knowledge
Refugees”.
The Procedure of the Deportation
As already mentioned it is the responsibility of the police to deport the asylum seekers.
In the following the simplified process of the deportation will be shown. After the
beginning of the duty, the police officers prepare the upcoming deportation and they
confer with the responsible department. The next step is the takeover of the person.
There are several aspects that have to be considered such as observing the luggage
limit, consultation with the accompanying doctor, etc. During the journey to the airport,
the police officers have to ensure the asylum seekers’ wellbeing. This implicates
continuous attention. At the airport, the officers hand the person over to the federal police
force that is responsible for accompanying them through the processes at the airport.
The police officers can be discharged as soon as the plane has departure. This is the
ideal case.
There is also the case that the asylum seeker is not willing to leave the country. In such
case, the procedure will look as follows. Firstly, the federal police force informs the police
54
of the states that the asylum seeker had expressed his intention not to board the aircraft.
As a consequence, the person is handed over to the police deportation group. The staff
has to contact the administrative office (Landesverwaltungsamt) in order to discuss the
further procedure. Next, a request for arrest has to be proposed for preventive detention
in the Detention Center for people that are obligated to leave the country in Ingelheim
(GfA). Furthermore, a demonstration date for an oral hearing has to be arranged by the
administrative office before the responsible local court. If the imprisonment is not issued,
the asylum seeker is brought back to the area where he was registered. Before the
asylum seeker is detained, he has to undergo an investigation in order to figure out if he
is able to be taken in custody. Afterwards, an application for membership
(Aufnahmeersuchen) has to be made to the Detention Center by the administrative
office. Once this is done, the person is taken to the local court in Frankfurt, the preventive
detention is issued by the competent judge and the asylum seeker is handed over to the
GfA in Ingelheim. As last option, the person has to leave towards his country of origin.
This procedure refers to the flow chart of the police that can be found in the annex of the
assignment.
Voluntary Return
Even though asylum seekers have to travel a very long way towards Western Europe
they sometimes decide to return to their country of origin. In the following the reasons for
the return and the support of the institutions will be explained. These results are based
on a study of the BAMF called “Rückkehr aus Deutschland”. It was conducted in 2006
and discusses topics as approaches, outcomes and shortcomings concerning the
realization of the voluntary return in Germany. In the study the term “voluntary return” is
defined as a return to the country of origin under a volunteer’s decision to terminate the
use of professional support.
Reasons for a Voluntary Return
The right to leave the country voluntarily is an essential element of an asylum seeker
policy that respects the human rights. The financial support is an important tool in order
to reduce hardening within the framework of the return process. Furthermore, asylum
seekers tend to leave the country voluntarily in order to avoid the compulsory
deportation. As a result, administrative costs can be reduced and other aspects such as
possible benefits for the countries of origin can be considered.
There are different reasons why asylum seekers decide to go back to their countries of
origin. According to the neoclassical approach, the asylum seekers adhere to the
principle of the cost and benefit considerations. They decide to leave the adopted country
if the aims of migrations such as improving of the recipient’s income, the increase of the
human capital or a permanent residence permit could not be achieved. So, this reason
for fleeing the country is due to a failed migration project. Another approach is the “New
Economics of Labour Migration”. This means that the migrant wants to leave the country
even though he could achieve the above mentioned aims. There is however the problem
that the motivation is just reduced to economic factors. The social context is not satisfied.
Furthermore, the asylum seekers prefer spending their life in the country of origin or to
invest the acquired capital and to apply the newly acquired knowledge.
55
It has to be acknowledged that the right of residence expires if the foreigner leaves the
country and does not come back within six months according to the law concerning
asylum seekers (§51 article 1 AufenthG). But this is not applicable to asylum seekers
that do not have a permit of residence.
Assistance for a Voluntary Return
In case that asylum seekers decide to return to their country of origin, they can expect
support of several institutions (BAMF, 2006).
An example for a humanitarian aid program is the REAG (Reintegration and Emigration
Program for Asylum Seekers in Germany) and the GARP (Government Assisted
Repatriation Program). These international organizations offer financial and operational
support for migrants that decide to go back to their country of origin or to continue the
journey on a voluntary basis. The authorized group of persons that can make use of the
program are rejected asylum seekers, war/ civil war asylum seekers and other foreigners
that have to leave the country. Within the framework of the REAG/GARP program the
financial support has to be applied by local and regional authorities, welfare
organizations, counselling center and the high commissioner for asylum seekers of the
United Nations (UNHCR). In Germany there are about two thoudand institutions
supporting the asylum seekers in case of a return.
Figure 20: Graphical Summary of Chapter 5 (Source: Authors, 2016)
The following support can be granted (Internationale Organisation für Migration 2016):
• Absorption of travel expenses (airplane, bus or train)
• Payment of an additional travel grant  two hundred and fifty euros per car
• Unique start-up support for asylum seekers from migration policy relevant countries
 two hundred euros per adult, one hundred euros per child (up to the age of twelve)
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There is no entitlement to the service of the REAG/GARP program and other supporting
programs/organizations, as the service is provided on a voluntary basis. Furthermore,
the support is granted only once to a person. In the case of a re-entry, the services paid
have to be reimbursed.
Since the introduction of the program in 1979, more than a half million of people were
financially supported in terms of a voluntary return to their country of origin. Thereby, the
arising costs are covered by the European Union, the Federal Ministry of the Interior and
the German States (Internationale Organisation für Migration 2016 2).
However, only the minority of asylum seekers that have been granted asylum aims to
return to the country of origin. Within the framework of a study conducted by the BAMF,
2800 accepted asylum seekers and recognized asylum seekers were interviewed and
eighty-four point seven percent stated that they would strive to stay in Germany forever,
while seventy-nine point eight percent of them indicated that their intention is to receive
German Citizenship (Haltaufderheide 2016).
6.2
Finland
Asylum Process
In Finland, The Finnish Immigration Service (MIGRI) determines whether an asylum
seeker is a refugee when it makes a decision on his/her application. Asylum status is
granted to those who are given asylum or accepted by Finland under the refugee quota.
Furthermore an asylum seeker can obtain a residence permit on the basis of subsidiary
protection or humanitarian protection. However a refugee status will not be granted in
such case (Finnish Immigration Service, 2016). According to the Immigration authorities,
from 16th of May 2016, this type of protection will no longer exist due to an amendment
of the Aliens Act. Due to the amendment to the Aliens Act, other grounds need to be
satisfied in order to receive extended permit. This grounds include: studies, working, selfemployment and family ties in Finland. However, the amendment to the Act does not
have any influence on the validity of residence permits that have already been granted
(Finnish Immigration Service, 2016).
An individual may seek asylum if there is a well-founded fear of being persecuted in the
home country. One must travel to Finland to apply for asylum. When arriving to Finland,
it is necessary to inform the border control authorities or the police as soon as possible.
The authority receiving asylum application will register the applier´s basic details, takes
fingerprints and photos and checks the necessary registers. Application is placed in a
queue at the Finnish Immigration Service (Migri, 2016). Applicants are placed in a
reception centre where they will live during while waiting for their asylum interview. An
application will not be processed in Finland if there is already the right of residence in
another safe country, or if another country is responsible for examining the applications
under the EU Dublin Regulation. The Finnish Immigration Service will let applicants know
as soon as possible when their asylum interview will be held. The applicant does not
need to contact the authorities to enquire about their asylum interview (Migri, 2016).
During the asylum interview, the Finnish Immigration Service will first establish the
applicant´s identity and travel route and decides whether the application can be
57
processed in Finland. At the asylum interview truth must be told regarding the reasons
for seeking asylum in extremely accurate details. In order to prove that an applicant is
truthful, all possible evidence must be brought. Asylum seekers can use an interpreter
and have a legal counsel at the interview. The Finnish Immigration service will provide
an interpreter if necessary. The Finnish Immigration Service examines whether an
applicant can be granted international protection or a residence permit on other grounds.
The police will inform when a decision has been made and will invite the applicant to
come and hear the decision. If international protection is granted, a residence permit
card will be received. An asylum seeker can subsequently apply for a refugee travel
document or an alien’s passport. If a negative decision on the application is received, it
is still possible to appeal against the decision to an administrative court. If the staying in
Finland is allowed, the applicant will be placed in a municipality. This means that there
will be a place to live in a municipality as soon as a municipality can receive the person.
If staying in Finland is not allowed, assisted voluntary return can be applied for. One may
get assistance for returning home through the system of assisted voluntary return
(Finnish Immigration Service, 2016)
The Finnish Immigration Service usually processes applications for international
protection according to the application’s date. However, there are a few exceptions. An
application may be processed faster whether:
-
The application requires little investigation
The applicant is seriously ill
The applicant is pregnant
The applicant is an unaccompanied asylum seeking minor
There are other reasons that make the applicant´s situation especially vulnerable.
Applications for international protection will be processed within either a normal or an
accelerated procedure. The processing time can take up to six months after an asylum
seeker has submitted the application. In case of delay the applicant will be informed of
it. Upon request, information about the reasons for the delay and the expected
processing time can be received. If one’s application is decided through an accelerated
procedure, the decision will be issued within five months after the submitted application.
After the decision has been made, residence permit cards are issued in about two weeks
(Finnish Immigration Service, 2016).
Process after obtaining a residence permit
After the residence permit has been obtained, the refugee will move from the reception
centre to their own apartment in their new home municipality. When the permit has been
received, it is necessary to contact the staff of the reception centre without any delay.
The reception centre will provide further information and instructions on the various
practical arrangements that need to be arranged. The staff will help filling out the
application for apartment and home municipality.
Finding an apartment in the Helsinki area is quite time consuming and demanding, and
can easily take several months. Asylum seekers are not usually able to find an apartment
58
themselves, as most of them do not speak English or Finnish. It is the reception centre’s
responsibility to find a place for them in such case. After finding a place to stay, the
asylum seeker will then be the customer of social services (Interview with Auramo
Reception Centre, 2016). Official measures related to integration into society will be
arranged within in the new home municipality. The deposit for the apartment is paid by
the Ministry of Employment and Economy, who is furthermore responsible for conducting
an integration program (Vuorio, 2016).
Support
Support after acceptance and after receiving a residence permit is provided by The
Social Insurance Institution of Finland, the Kansaneläkelaitos (Kela). Asylum seekers will
become eligible for Kela benefits once they have a residence permit and are considered
to be living in Finland permanently. This requires them to have completed the reception
program for asylum seekers. The cash reception allowance paid to asylum seekers is
not provided by Kela. The range of persons who are considered to be moving to Finland
permanently includes those who have been granted asylum. Persons who are granted a
residence permit under the refugee quota are also considered to be moving to Finland
permanently. Refugee families, like any other residents of Finland who are eligible for
social security can get benefits from Kela. They may be eligible for child benefits, child
home care allowance or housing allowance, as well as other benefits (Kela, 2016).
Individual asylum seekers are also eligible for the same benefits that are available to
anyone who is living in Finland permanently and covered by the Finnish Social security
system. For example, if they are unable to find work immediately, they may be eligible
for labour market subsidy. Another available support is the housing allowance. Kela pays
a general housing allowance for costs related to housing. Housing allowance can be paid
to one person or to a household. It can be at most eighty percent of housing costs.
Twenty percent is always paid by the one who receives support (Kela, 2016).
Voluntary Organizations
As previously mentioned in Chapter 4, the integration process in Finland takes about ten
years. In Finland, voluntary organizations such as the Red Cross provide support with
the first steps of the integration process. Activities such as orientation services, visitor
services, homework clubs and international clubs promote integration in a multicultural
society. The language clubs offer supplement within the already existing courses provide
by the Ministry of Employment.
The Finnish Red Cross supports and aims to build a pluralistic society that condemns
discrimination and racism, where tolerance is seen as a key factor to engage all actions
and activities towards an efficient integration. Furthermore, the organization is
encouraging other migrants living in Finland to be part of the Finnish Red Cross activities
as volunteers.
59
Rejected applications and reasons
When an asylum application is rejected for any reason, the applicant will either receive
an announcement of deportation or a refusal of entry, depending on their status during
the procedure. If an applicant is past the initial step, a rejection generally leads to the
deportation process. If the applicant is still at the initial step of the application, or either
he has committed criminal activity, smuggling or attempting to circumvent immigration
laws more brazenly than usual, they are issued a refusal of entry without the usual grace
period associated with the deportation process. In severe enough cases this can apply
to the entire Schengen area. If the deportee does not comply within the thirty day grace
period they will be issued an official refusal of entry to Finland as well as the rest of the
Schengen area (Migri, 2016).
Upon criminal activity, the court may decide on deportation instead of imprisonment or
other such penalties. If a negative decision is issued to an applicant, he will have the
right to a lawyer to help him appeal the decision, as well as an interpreter to overcome
the language barrier. Reception centers cannot influence this decision beyond arranging
for meetings with the asylum seeker. Oftentimes asylum seekers who have nowhere to
go but are also not entitled to stay will stall for time with appealing their deportation,
making use of the slow processing of these. Ultimately, once time’s up or the refugee
feels the need to do so, they can also simply run off, which effectively makes them illegal
immigrants and subject to immediate deportation on discovery (Migri, 2016).
In 2015, the Finnish Immigration Service has made 7466 decisions on applications, of
which 1879 have been approved. Between January and May 2016, the Finnish
Immigration Service has already processed 7550 applications, of which 2019 were
positive, according to the Migri statistics (Migri, 2016). Due to the high amount of
applications to be processed, the Finnish Immigration Service was forced to employ
more personnel to process the applications. The Migri office is currently processing
around 500 application per week. However, over 21.000 applications are still pending
and about 15.000 applicants are still waiting for the asylum interview. According to the
Migri, asylum seekers who arrived in the autumn in 2015 will be interviewed in late
summer of 2016 at the latest (YLE, 2016).
In 2015, Finland was rejecting unaccompanied minors seeking asylum. According to the
European Parliament’s advisory committee Cecilia Wilkström, the country could have
been called in front of the European Court of Justice to respond of its actions against the
Dublin Regulation. However, this rule does not apply for children arriving alone (YLE
News, 2016). Finland has currently granted asylum to 195 underage applicants from a
total of 3,201 since the starting of the crisis in the summer of 2015. This number equals
the percentage of successful application of 6.09 percent (Yle News, 2016).
The deportation process
The process of deportation refers to the delivery of the refused applicant to a suitable
airport or border crossing to return to their country of origin. The typical deportation
decision issues a grace period of thirty days for an asylum seeker to make their
preparation before having to leave the country. Deportation is assisted and supervised,
60
and it is funded by Migri. Inability to leave during the grace period will be met with an
enforced removal from Finland and a refusal of entry. If the applicant can be proved
against to have arrived from a safe country of asylum, or have an application that is
blatantly attempting to abuse the system or obviously unfounded with anything to indicate
an asylum request, a forced removal within a working week will take place instead.
Deporting an applicant will cause any previously issued residence permit to become void.
In addition to this, any grace period to deportation is nullified upon discovery of breach
of immigration protocol, and a refusal of entry is issued (Migri, 2016).
Voluntary return
Should an asylum seeker be issued temporary protection in another country, a rejection
of their residence permit application, withdraw said application, or be brought
unwillingly into the country through for example human trafficking with no place to live,
they may apply for assisted voluntary return to be funded to their country of origin. All
applications for visas, alien’s passports, residence permits and the like must be
withdrawn for the process to go through. Assisted voluntary return at this stage may
only be applied for if necessary due to the above reasons, and if the returnee is
reasonably unable to pay for it. Thee assistance is granted in cash or in-kind. The
amount depends on the asylum seeker’s country of origin. Should one choose voluntary
return within the deportation grace period of thirty days, further refusal of entry into the
Schengen area will not be issued.
Voluntary return assistance can include travel expenses, relocation costs and
reintegration assistance in the asylum seeker’s home country, which are paid in cash.
In-kind assistance (not cash but services, supplies or assistance) can include finding a
job, starting a business, accessing education or training and finding accommodation. Inkind support is based on need and the availability, and is not available in all countries of
return.
To apply, an asylum seeker must submit an application in either a reception center (in
case an asylum seekers is stationed in one) or to the Finnish Immigration Service. The
amount of cash support granted, depending on the country of origin, varies between two
hundred and one thousand euros for adults, and one hundred and six hundred euros for
children. In kind support is worth one thousand five hundred euros for adults, of which
two hundred euros is given in cash and seven hundred and fifty euros for children, of
which one hundred euros is given in cash. Asylum seekers may be also granted with
increased assistance depending on the asylum seeker’s age, injury, illness, family
circumstances, other personal reasons, if one is a victim of human trafficking or is an
underage child without a guardian. The maximum amount of increased assistance is one
thousand five hundred euros for adults and seven hundred and fifty euros for children.
In case an asylum seeker is intending to abuse the assistance system or if it is deemed
one does not need the full assistance, decreased assistance is granted (F.I.S., 2016).
During the first months of 2016, around 3000 asylum seekers have voluntary left Finland,
according to the border authority. The number includes only the people who have left the
61
Schengen area from Helsinki airport, therefore the amount could be higher. The majority
of the asylum seekers were from Iraq. According to Tobias van Treeck of the IOM, the
returnees have stated that “family members have been experiencing difficulties” (YLE
News, 2016).
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7
Comparison and Conclusion
In the previous chapters four five and six various logistical processes regarding the
refugee crisis, from border control to integration and deportation processes have been
described. In the current chapter these processes will be evaluated critically and put into
a context regarding their relevancy in terms of support. The logistical aspects will not
only be evaluated on how they render the processes and the throughput time faster or
more efficient, but furthermore on how they add value to the whole process. In this
process not only the cost/benefit and time savings are seen as important, but they will
be also analyzed from a long-term perspective.
The comparison of the logistical aspects this report endeavors to illustrate have to be
viewed in the light of two demographically and culturally different EU countries which
have been undermined by the unsustainability of the Dublin Regulation and the Eurozone
instability, which has diminished the mutual trust between member states.
7.1
Distribution
In Germany and Finland different ways of refugees’ distribution are used. The way it is
now, we think, is the best.
In Chapter four, the Königsteiner key was introduced. It is a system that has been used
in Germany for research purposes and is currently utilized to distribute the asylum
seekers into the different states in a fair manner. In fact, regarding the size of the country
and the different economic power of each state, it is a high qualitative method of putting
pressure (monetarily speaking) on each of them in a fair manner.
This does not apply for Finland. Neither does this, or a similar process exist in the
country, nor is it needed. Due to the reason that the country is significantly less populated
if compared to Germany (Finland has the lowest population density in the EU). If such a
system was adopted it would result in receptions centers being established in the far
north or other less inhabited areas for the purpose of housing a small number of asylum
seekers. Therefore, the German Königsteiner key system does not apply. The current
method of sending the asylum seekers to “where there is a free place” seems to be the
most functional one. Furthermore, the indebtedness or budget account of the different
regions in Finland do not differ as much as they differ in German states.
7.2
Registration process and network
In Germany, the process of registration of asylum seekers had major deficits, especially
during the crisis. Due to data safety laws, the registration process had to be repeated for
every institution that was involved in asylum seekers administration at one point. Finally,
in 2016, a system was introduced that can be used by each party and has a common
data basis. This improvement in the process took too long and was introduced too late.
The change in the system should have been easier to alter right in the zenith of the crisis.
63
In Finland, such data safety laws, which would be a hindrance, do not exist and therefore
it was allowed all along for all the institutions involved in the refugee crisis, to use the
same databases. Finland was able to use an optimized registration of asylum seekers in
the form of the Registration center. This center was set up in Tornio at the peak of the
crises simply because most asylum seekers were entering the country through the
Haparanda-Tornio border (Vuorio, 2016). This way the asylum seekers were registered
immediately after arrival and then moved to the reception centers and the whole process
was controlled by the authorities. Finland was able to set up the Registration center very
quickly and it proved to be very useful during the influx. Unfortunately, in Germany the
situation has not been the same as the asylum seekers have been arriving into the
country by different routes and transport. Therefore, setting up a similar Registration
center has not been possible.
7.3
Asylum process
In Germany, another optimization of the process took place. Whereas the asylum
processes generally took up to six months, the responsible parties wanted to shorten the
process for people with high chances of staying in the country. As a result of the EASYsystem, of which the Königsteiner Key is part of, the asylum seekers are also distributed
by their origin. Saarland has an estimation of around eighty to ninety percent Syrians.
Syrian asylum seekers have a one hundred percent chance of staying, since their
country is a war zone at the moment. The reception center Lebach managed to improve
their asylum processes, so that now it takes two weeks. For asylum seekers from other
countries, this system improvement does not apply. Also other criteria are neglected
completely - the rule is first come first serve.
In Finland, where a low percentage of asylum seekers are actually from Syria (the
majority of the 2015 asylum seekers came from Iraq), the system focuses rather on other
criteria such as illnesses of the asylum seeker or pregnancy, in short, how urgent it is to
accelerate the process for individuals. Germany should also adapt to this process. Syria
is seen as a war zone and unsafe country, which was put as priority in their list. However,
this could create an unstable situation of discrimination for if these facts are neglected,
racism could be assumed. Finland does not have a separate list of safe countries. Each
asylum seeker’s application is dealt with on its own merits. Currently there are asylum
seekers being accepted and rejected from all countries of the world (Harmonen, 2016).
Germany has a shorter lead time for processing applications (five point three months on
average, highly dependent from the federal state). Saarland region is seen as an
example to follow, with an average application time of three point six months.
In Finland the lead time is up to six months, which has been a reason of complaint for
asylum seekers which have decided to endure voluntary return, as seen in the early 2016
with thousands of asylum seekers leaving the country. The Finnish Immigration Service
office is currently processing around 500 applications per week. However, there are still
thousands of asylum seekers waiting for their asylum interview to be conducted.
Considering that most of them have been arriving in Finland in the autumn of 2015, this
does not comply in accordance with the asylum process time. Never the less, Finland
64
has, due to the lowest population density and the small market, only a certain limited
capacity, and it seems that the country has been receiving more asylum seekers that the
country can actually take. Although reception centers have strived to accommodate
efficiently thousands of asylum seekers, the processing of asylum applications seems
not to be able to cope in a timely manner with the variable factors (asylum seekers’ flow).
7.4
Integration
The average integration time in the Finnish society requires abound ten years, and it is
not until the second generation that the integration process can be considered
acceptable. Although some companies such as Luona are working in order to reduce the
lead time, it is only until the second generation. In Finland the process of finding an
apartment, especially in the capital area, is time consuming, and the reception centers
have to spend time and effort in order to accommodate and integrate an asylum seeker
as soon as the asylum has been granted. The majority of the asylum seekers prefer to
live in the Helsinki area, due to better work opportunities and higher multiculturalism.
One fourth of Finland belongs to the Arctic Circle, and severe winter weather conditions,
especially in the Tornio area, have been reason of complaint from asylum seekers. The
location and the territory, thus the environment, plays a crucial role in the logistical
aspects of the asylum seekers flow within the country.
The opening of a bank account in Finland as proposed in chapter four is rather difficult.
Most of the Finnish banks do not open a bank account in case the person requesting it
is unemployed, and most of the workplaces do not sign a contract with employees who
do not have a bank account. This creates a significant bottleneck process that affects
the integration process. The work permit that the asylum seekers are requested to have
can be only paid in cash. As the Meltola reception center staff has suggested, this fee
should be allowed to be paid for instance to the Red Cross. The staff also suggested a
work/summer work voucher option.
7.5
Working capability
While in Finland the military was able to conduct a “disaster preparedness”, it is forbidden
in Germany to do so - the German military is only allowed to defend and operate along
the borders, when they need to defend the border, as for example during war or when
attacked. The only parties that would be able to conduct an emergency plan, are the
parties involved in the processes of the refugee crisis. During the crisis this was a real
struggle, yet some of the reception centers managed to improve their procedures - an
example for this is the reception center in Lebach, which was able to implement a twoshift system for registration in the boom of the crisis while the center was overwhelmed
by asylum applicants. The correction of the process was so successful that the state of
emergency was handled within two weeks and directors of reception centers of other
states adapted the process improvement.
65
7.6
Psychological Support
Furthermore, although asylum seekers have been described on this report as part of a
logistical process in the supply chain of the refugees’ crisis, it must not be forget that a
process can be improved not only by reducing lead times or technological development,
but furthermore by enhancing the human aspects that can add value in the management
of the flow of human beings. Both Finland and Germany’s reception centers do not
provide extensive psychological support for people who have fled their home countries
in search of asylum, escaping war and persecution.
According to the Meltola reception center, the mental health services provided are
working properly and all the asylum seekers that have needed treatment have also
received it. However, the mental health issues of the asylum seekers are highly different
from the ones experienced by the Finnish patients, for war and persecution traumas, and
this should have been foreseen. The midwife service for the asylum seekers needs
improvement, for instance by hiring their own midwife for the Red Cross who would go
around the reception centers. It should be mandatory from the municipalities to offer the
parental clinic service, as currently in the capital area the asylum seekers have to travel
to Helsinki for this service. In this situation, the parental clinic personnel can change at
every meeting, whereas continuity would be the best for the expecting mothers.
7.7
Decision making process
At the peak of the crises, asylum seekers were arriving faster than any party had
accounted for. Many asylum centers had to be set up with sometimes just a few hours
of notice. This meant that there was no time to set up biddings for the most suitable
service providers. In Finland the private company Luona was chosen to run the reception
centers, not only because it’s connections with Forenom, the facility provider, and the
Human Resource company Barona, but also because the decision making process in
the municipal level is very slow (Kaukiainen, 2016). Setting up a municipal reception
center can take weeks or months and there was no time for pondering during the influx.
Also the budget for Migri is fixed and getting more funds to that budget is very difficult
and a long process. Ideally the funds for Migri and the asylum accommodation should
be easily available (Vuorio, 2016).
7.8
Perspective
This report hopes to be an empirical and valid research method on the logistical aspects
of the current refugee crisis between the Finnish and German systems concerning the
asylum process. The authors came to learn not only the similarities and differences
between the two EU countries, but furthermore had a deeper insight of a process that is
perhaps of not common knowledge, as enhanced by the media, the public opinion and
political debates, and in its most negative aspects, by populism and highly leveraged
perceptions.
The authors have attempted to illustrate and represent the logistical aspects and issues
within the current destabilized situation of the European Union, being highly critical on
the validity and effectiveness of the asylum process in light of the unsustainability of the
66
Dublin Regulation, which undermines the distribution of the asylum seekers’ flow. Both
qualitative and quantitative aspects were researched, studied and illustrated. Never the
less, several positive aspects such as the excellent work of volunteers and reception
centers have been praised in this report. During the learning process the authors
illustrated their findings, discovering how the goal of both countries is to reduce the lead
time in processing asylum applications and integrating the asylum seekers in both
working and social life. As the locations of the logistical aspects of the asylum seekers’
crisis have been often unpredictable, especially in the second part of 2015, the
authorities in both countries are required to react in an efficient and timely manner, as
several issues regarding the process of both countries still persist.
As far as the authors of this report are concerned, a transparent, valuable logistical work
that also considers the human aspects of the process needs to be conducted from both
countries in order to cope with the current crisis, from the beginning to the end of the
supply chain, and furthermore through a long term integration program in the Finnish and
German community.
67
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Interviews:
Interview Mr. Beneditschuk, responsible for the allocation within the state capital,
12.04.2016
Interview with: Harmonen, U., 2016. Role of the Finnish Immigration Service in
handling refugee crisis [Interview] (18 4 2016).
Interview with Director of ADD, Günther Gerhardt, 13.04.2016
Interview with Director of the Land admission office, Dr. Hoffmann, 13.04.2016
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Interview with: Ihalainen, J. (01. April 2016). Rental Manager at Forenom. (H. d.
Correia, Haastattelija)
Interview with: Kaukiainen, P., 2016. Role of Finnish Red Cross in refugee crisis
[Inverview] (7 4 2016).
Interview with: Kaukiainen, P. (01. April 2016). Executive Director of Finnish Red Cross
Helsinki . (A. Nurvo, Haastattelija)
Interview with: Määttä, J. (01. April 2016). Service Director. (H. d. Correia,
Haastattelija)
Interview with: Messam, Eeva-Liisa. (08. April 2016) Manager Auramo reception
center, The Finnish Red Cross
Interview with main coordinator at initial reception Passau, Deborah Metzlaff,
03.04.2016
Interview with: Pitkälä, J. (01. March 2016). Senior Vice President at Barona Group Ltd.
(H. d. Correia, Haastattelija)
Interview with Ms. Preiser - administration of the refugee issues in the commune
Quierschied 22.03.2016
Interview Mr. Schaumlöffel, responsible for allocation within the regional federation
Saarbrücken, 29.03.2016
Interview with: Sivula, M. (01. April 2016). Property Manager at Luona Oy. (H. d.
Correia, Haastattelija)