THE HAGUE, 11/10/03 - All rejected asylum-seekers will be detained ahead of their expulsion. Even if they still have the option of appealing, they will be placed in special expulsion centers, under a plan by Immigration Minister Rita Verdonk.

Rejected asylum-seekers voluntarily returning to their country of origin will be given a sum of money. Refugees refusing to leave will automatically be turned down if they knock on the door a second time. Only if they pay the costs of their earlier expulsion can they apply again for asylum.

Verdonk is giving the airlines an important role. They will be required to take back to their own country all asylum-seekers who are immediately rejected in the reporting centers on the border. If the airlines do not cooperate fully, financial sanctions will follow.

For the expulsion centers, the minister is passing over local authorities. The reception and possible expulsion of asylum-seekers is at present largely in their hands. But according to the government, local authorities often cooperate insufficiently with the expulsion of rejected refugees.

The minister will also play a bigger role in steering all services involved in the return of rejected asylum-seekers, such as the aliens police and the Immigration and Naturalization Service (IND). Verdonk's plans do still have to undergo a careful legal checkup, say sources close to the cabinet.