Recommendations

Refugees Welcome recommends that Denmark should: 

• Fully respect the Refugee Convention and other conventions on human rights
– including ensuring that the Refugee Appeals Board is made up of independent and competent members, that there is a right of appeal to the courts, and that UNHCR's recommendations are followed to a greater extent, such as, paying greater consideration to gender issues and stopping the practice of revoking leave to remain on questionable grounds. Read more.

• Ensure a fairer and more uniform asylum procedure
– including by training and examining interpreters, saving audio recordings of interviews, providing appointments with an independent advisor shortly after arrival (e.g. from the Danish Refugee Council), keeping to service standards in all phases of the asylum process, and keeping applicants better informed if a case becomes protracted. Read more.

• Recognise that refugees need a secure future and not just temporary residence
– by granting permanent residence immediately and facilitating access to family reunification and citizenship. Read more.

• Invite asylum seekers to participate actively in society from day one
– for example, by closing the large asylum centres and providing access to private accommodation with a regular allowance, as well as access to work/education. This will enable them to maintain and develop their skills, regardless of whether they continue to integrate in Denmark or return home. Read more.

• Ensure the rights of asylum-seeking children in all circumstances
– including recognising children's own reasons for seeking asylum and their attachment to Denmark after a long period of residence. Read more. 

• Treat people with respect regardless of their immigration status
– including closing all removal centres and putting an end to the imprisonment of asylum seekers who have not committed any crime.Read more.

• Ensure that refugees do not end up as a poor and isolated underclass
– by giving them the same benefits as other residents and simultaneously making an active effort to provide upskilling, education, job training and job creation. Read more.

• Ensure equal access to healthcare for refugees
– by introducing thorough health checks and an introduction to the Danish healthcare system when they arrive in the municipality in which they will live, and ensuring rapid treatment for trauma, where necessary. In addition, the policy that people have to pay for their own translators after having been in the country for three years should be abolished. Read more.

• New approach to rejected asylum seekers
– 40 years of failed policy are based on two main assumptions, both of which are wrong: that a more pragmatic approach to rejected asylum seekers will lead to an increase in new arrivals, and that people can be pressured into leaving because of miserable living conditions. Read more.

• Work actively for a more just asylum system at the international and European level
– accept more quota refugees, strengthen the UNHCR in their support to displaced people and refugees near their country of origin, stop all plans for outsourcing refugee protection obligations to other countries, issue humanitarian visas, work towards a more uniform system of reception and asylum assessment at the EU and international level, support a policy of greater distribution within the EU rather than the ineffective Dublin Agreement. Read more.