All European countries are not the same. The Dublin Regulation and onward migration in Europe

Abstract

This report describes a Dublin System on the brink of a major crisis. The report examines the significance of the Dublin Regulation for the onward migration of asylum seekers within Europe, based on data collected in Norway, Sweden, and Germany from February to April 2015. Our findings from this period are currently confirmed and strengthened with the increasing numbers of asylum seekers coming to Europe. The purpose of the Dublin Regulation is to determine the Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection lodged in one of the Member States. It is crucial how the Dublin Regulation is applied, as this decides where migrants will live in the future. This research project aimed to identify the most important effects of the Dublin Regulation from the points of view of Member States as well as from migrants’ perspectives. The sharing of responsibility for asylum seekers in Europe is controversial. While the Dublin Regulation is the only current framework for allocating responsibility for individual asylum claims among the European countries, it is not designed to be an instrument for the general sharing of responsibility between Member States. The absence of adequate instruments for such sharing has detrimental results for Member States, the European Union, and migrants alike.

This report describes a Dublin System on the brink of a major crisis. The report examines the significance of the Dublin Regulation for the onward migration of asylum seekers within Europe, based on data collected in Norway, Sweden, and Germany from February to April 2015. Our findings from this period are currently confirmed and strengthened with the increasing numbers of asylum seekers coming to Europe. The purpose of the Dublin Regulation is to determine the Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection lodged in one of the Member States. It is crucial how the Dublin Regulation is applied, as this decides where migrants will live in the future. This research project aimed to identify the most important effects of the Dublin Regulation from the points of view of Member States as well as from migrants’ perspectives. The sharing of responsibility for asylum seekers in Europe is controversial. While the Dublin Regulation is the only current framework for allocating responsibility for individual asylum claims among the European countries, it is not designed to be an instrument for the general sharing of responsibility between Member States. The absence of adequate instruments for such sharing has detrimental results for Member States, the European Union, and migrants alike.