Dutch internal border checks turned away 650 people
Asylum minister Bart van den Brink told the Tweede Kamer in a letter that 650 people were refused entry during almost two years of internal border controls, which have now ended.
The Marechaussee (military police) turned away 650 people during the Netherlands' internal border controls, according to a letter asylum minister Bart van den Brink sent to the Tweede Kamer on Wednesday. Reasons included not having the right papers, being unable to explain properly what they had come to do in the Netherlands, or being seen as a danger to national security.
Why it matters
- The Netherlands has ended the internal border controls, because such a measure can only be temporary.
- Instead, the usual Marechaussee checks have been expanded: officers can check the same place more often, and check all passengers on a plane or train rather than only some.
At airports, 130 people were found not to meet the entry conditions. Because they had arrived by plane and were already on Dutch soil, they were given a return decision and had to leave the country. People who asked for asylum during the controls have that right; the Marechaussee must refer them to Ter Apel.
Then asylum minister Marjolein Faber introduced the controls in December 2024. The cabinet wanted them to reduce the number of asylum applications and ease pressure on the asylum system. The Algemene Rekenkamer (court of audit) said the extra checks are not effective, because they do not produce the lower number of applications the cabinet wanted. Faber pointed to the deterrent effect the controls were said to have.
Van den Brink also wrote that 300 people were detained during the internal border controls. The Marechaussee still carries out spot checks in border areas; since those began in February this year, 510 people have been detained, he said.
The minister must report to the European Union on how the border controls went.
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Follow the story: Algemene Rekenkamer
Tweede Kamer
The House of Representatives, the lower and more powerful house of the Dutch parliament. Its 150 members are elected directly; it can amend bills and holds the cabinet to account.
Marechaussee
The Marechaussee is the military police force of the Netherlands, part of the armed forces, which guards the country's borders and airports. It carries out border checks, including at Schiphol and other entry points, and decides whether travellers may enter the country. Its role in checks means it is also the body that refers asylum applicants onward to the registration centre in Ter Apel.
Ter Apel
Ter Apel is a village in the north-east of the Netherlands, home to the central registration centre for asylum seekers (aanmeldcentrum). There, people who apply for asylum are registered, have their identity and travel route checked, and are assigned to a reception place. Because the centre is the main entry point of the asylum process, the name is used to refer to the registration centre itself.
Algemene Rekenkamer
The Algemene Rekenkamer is the Netherlands' independent audit institution, which examines how the national government spends public money and whether its policies achieve their intended results. It reports its findings to the Tweede Kamer and the Eerste Kamer, and its reports often lead to parliamentary debate. Its reviews of government measures are regularly cited in discussions about policy effectiveness.