Finland Immigration law reform to phase out asylum approvals on compassionate grounds
Finland’s Interior Ministry says it’s revisiting legislation
relating to asylum applications. The ministry said Tuesday that reforms
in the pipeline mean it will give up the practice of granting residence
permits on compassionate grounds to applicants who don’t meet the
criteria for international protection.
The Interior Ministry said that it will review its procedures for
granting residence permits to asylum seekers in a bid to bring national
legislation in line with European Union regulations.
The review project will get started immediately so that it can be circulated for comments in November, the ministry said.
Current
immigration legislation allows for the authorities to grant asylum or
issue a residence permit on the basis of subsidiary protection or
humanitarian protection where applicants meet the requirements for
international protection.
Permits on compassionate grounds inconsistent with EU practice
The
ministry noted however, that in cases where applicants don’t meet the
criteria for international protection, Finnish authorities may also
grant a residence permit on compassionate grounds. However it pointed
out that the practice of granting residence permits to asylum applicants
on compassionate grounds approach is not consistent with EU
regulations.
"In practice, this could mean that residence permits
would no longer be issued on the basis of humanitarian protection," the
ministry said in a release.
The Interior Ministry said that the
number of individuals who had received humanitarian protection in
Finland was very small, accounting for roughly one percent of all favourable asylum decisions between 2013 and 2014.
The
ministry said it would also be looking to tighten the criteria for
family re-unification cases to comply with the EU’s family reunification
directive.
A government proposal on the legislative changes will be submitted to Parliament early next year.
- Yle Finland
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