By focusing simultaneously on housing, language acquisition, training and work, public authorities will minimise the amount of valuable time lost in integrating asylum migrants. This is stated in the Policy Brief No time to lose: from reception to integration of asylum migrants, a joint publication of the Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP), the Research and Documentation Centre (WODC) and the Netherlands Scientific Council for Government Policy (WRR).
Attention is currently focused mainly on the problems relating to the local reception of new groups of asylum seekers. At the same time, however, policymakers face a second fundamental challenge, namely the integration into Dutch society of asylum migrants who have been granted a residence permit. This policy brief focuses on this category of asylum migrants, who are referred to as permit holders.
The policy brief is based in part on a unique cohort study into the position of 33,000 registered asylum migrants who were granted a residence permit in the Netherlands between 1995 and 1999 and who remained in the Netherlands until at least 2011. In addition, a survey of current practices relating to the integration of status holders was carried out in eleven municipalities: Alkmaar, Amersfoort, Amsterdam, The Hague, Deventer, Eindhoven, Goes, Heerenveen, Nijmegen, Rotterdam and Zwolle.
Authors of the policy brief: Godfried Engbersen (WRR), Jaco Dagevos (SCP), Roel Jennissen (WODC),Linda Bakker (SCP/EUR) and Arjen Leerkes (WODC), with the assistance of Jeanine Klaver and Arend Odé (Regioplan)