This is the result of a range of restrictive policy measures taken in the last few years. The new policy as regards inburgering (integration), under the motto of strengthening the ‘own responsibility’ of migrants, starkly reduced public support services available to migrants required to pass the integration exam and introduced extensive fees. As a result, the Court of Justice of the European Union (in case C-579/13 P and S) has put into doubt the continued compliance of the Dutch policy with Directive 2003/109 on long-term residence.

Similarly, labour market access of migrants has been severely hampered as the result of the 2014 changes to the Wet Arbeid Vreemdelingen. This law now contains the possibilities of applying quotas for (non-EU) migrant workers in certain sectors, seeks to circumscribe the manner in which employers may seek to target vacancies towards non-EU migrant labour and increases the regularity of labour market tests that must be satisfied for an employer to continue to employ a migrant worker.

Other notable new restrictions since 2010 pertain to family reunification, circumscribing the circle of persons eligible for family reunification and limiting their entitlement to an independent residence permit. In addition, the revocation of the Wet overleg minderhedenbeleid eliminated the structural consultation of representative organisation of minorities in the context of the formulation of migration and integration policy. Finally, expulsion of migrants having resided in the Netherlands for a very long time (20+ years plus) has been made possible where this was previously precluded, and permissible absences of persons seeking to naturalise as Dutch nationals have been restricted.

Overall, these changes can be seen as undesirable. Recent polls show that the majority of the Dutch population considers that the integration of migrants in to the Dutch society is failing. Adding new restrictions to such crucial elements such as labour market access, and limiting political participation of migrant organisations surely does nothing to improve the situation. Moreover, the current policy also risks forgoing the many benefits migrants and immigration generally can bring to the Dutch society,[2] which in times of crisis should be welcomed rather than set aside. There is therefore ample reason to critically evaluate both the current and future direction of Dutch migration and integration policy.

[2] OECD Migration Policy Debates, ‘Is migration good for the economy?’, available at: http://www.oecd.org/migration/mig/OECD%20Migration%20Policy%20Debates%20Numero%202.pdf . See also Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly Resolution 1972 (2014), Ensuring that migrants are a benefit for European host societies, available at: http://www.assembly.coe.int/nw/xml/XRef/X2H-Xref-ViewPDF.asp?FileID=20480&lang=en.