Rejected Afghan asylum seekers in the Netherlands: Migration experiences, current situations and future aspirations
Katherine Kuschminder & Melissa Siegel
#2016-007
Afghans have been a central asylum seeking group in Europe, and
specifically the Netherlands since the conflict in Afghanistan escalated
in the 1990s. Many of the Afghan asylum seekers in the Netherlands since
2001 receive a negative decision on their asylum request, however, do
not leave the Netherlands and continue to live irregularly. This paper
provides a descriptive exploration of the experiences of Afghan migrants
with regard to their journeys to the Netherlands and while living
irregularly in the Netherlands. The paper is based on 47 interviews
conducted with Afghans living irregularly in the Netherlands and 11 key
stakeholder interviews, which were conducted from 2013-2014. The
findings discuss the complexity of Afghan migration movements including
root causes and transit experiences, the factors influencing the
destination choice of the Netherlands, reception experiences and future
aspirations.
Key Words: Irregular migration, Afghanistan, The Netherlands
JEL Classification: F22, J13, J15