Minister Faber of Asylum and Migration will not force municipalities and provinces to provide additional asylum seeker accommodations, despite some falling short of the required 96,000 spots as mandated by the distribution law. Currently, nearly 90,000 spots have been arranged, with firm agreements for 82,000 and promising initiatives for 8,000.
Northern provinces, Flevoland, and Zeeland have exceeded their targets and may “trade” with those lagging behind. The distribution law enables the minister to enforce compliance, but Faber refrains, indicating the government’s desire to abolish the law and citing reduced asylum inflows as a reason to eventually render it unnecessary.
The Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA) now estimates a need for 115,000 places by January 1, 2026, largely due to bottlenecks in transitioning asylum seekers with residence status to regular housing. Faber plans further discussions with COA and local governments on this matter.
Source: NOS