On 23 May the Migration Law Clinic published a new expert opinion titled ‘The ‘bewijsnood’ policy of the Dutch immigration service: A correct interpretation of the Family Reunification Directive or an unlawful hurdle?’

The expert opinion concerns Eritrean asylum status holders in the Netherlands, who try to be reunited with their family members left behind. An asylum status holder can apply for reunification with his family left abroad, within three months following the decision granting his or her asylum status.One of the conditions for family reunification is that the family members prove their identity and the existence of actual family ties with the sponsor. Both the identity and the family ties are in principle established through official documents. However, the situation of the asylum status holder and his or her family members sometimes makes it difficult or even impossible to provide these documents.

Usually in cases where no official documents are submitted, it is possible to establish the identity and family ties through alternative evidence, for example unofficial documents such as religious certificates or non-documentary evidence such as DNA-investigation or identifying interviews. Since the beginning of 2016 the Dutch Immigration and Naturalisation Service applies a new policy, which implies that only if the IND has accepted that the lack of official documentation cannot be attributed to the applicant, it is prepared to take alternative evidence into account, like DNA testing or interviews. The IND assumes that Eritreans are generally able to obtain such official documentation. The stricter application of the Dutch evidentiary policy has led to considerable amount of rejections of Eritrean family reunification cases since the beginning of 2016.

The expert opinion examines whether the rejection by the IND of the explanation of Eritrean sponsors for the lack of official documentation is based on sufficient and reliable country of origin information. Furthermore it assesses whether the Dutch evidentiary policy, as it is applied in Eritrean family reunification cases, is compatible with the EU Family Reunification Directive.

On 7 March 2017 the Migration Law Clinic and the Dutch Council for Refugees organised an expert meeting about this topic. Furthermore Verblijfblog published a blog in which the topic is explained in Dutch.