THE HAGUE, 16/09/11 - The cabinet is virtually certain to adopt five legislative proposals from Immigration and Asylum Minister Gerd Leers which will substantially tighten up immigration and asylum policy.
Leers wants to make it easier to deport aliens who commit crimes. Should they have been in the Netherlands for less than three years, they will run the risk of deportation if they are given a jail sentence regardless of the length of the sentence.
Taking action against systematic foreign criminals will also become easier. Leers wants to deport anyone convicted of a crime three times within three years. The minster is not taking into account here how long an alien has already been living in the Netherlands. If offenders have, for example, been living in the Netherlands for 20 years, they can still be sent back to the country of origin.
The minister also wants to view family migration and reunification more stringently. Only the so-called 'core family' will still be eligible for coming to the Netherlands. This means the partner and underage children. Grandpas, grandmas, nephews and nieces will no longer be eligible for family reunification in future.
Additionally, a waiting period of one year will be introduced for people who are bringing their partner over. An 'import bride' or bridegroom will only be eligible for independent residency after five years - until that time, he or she is legal only on the basis of the relationship with the partner. Currently, the period is three years. In this way, the Christian democratic (CDA) minister hopes to prevent marriages of convenience.
Illegal residence in the Netherlands will also become a crime. In his proposals, Leers has also worked out the sanctions for this. Illegals can in future face a prison sentence of up to four months or a fine of up to 3,800 euros.
A stricter asylum and immigration policy is one of the core points of the tolerance accord between the conservatives (VVD), CDA and the Party for Freedom (PVV). For Geert Wilders' PVV, such a more stringent policy was an important condition for supporting the minority cabinet.