Danish Law Requires Asylum Seekers to Hand Over Valuables - nytimes

LONDON — Denmark passed a law on Tuesday requiring newly arrived asylum seekers to hand over valuables, including jewelry and gold, to help pay for their stay in the country. The move underscored an anti-immigration backlash that has prompted several European countries to seek ways to discourage migrants from entering.

Under the law, which passed by a sizable majority after several hours of debate, refugees who enter Denmark with assets of more than 10,000 kroner, about $1,450, would have to contribute toward the costs of their stay. After a global outcry over the law, however, goods with sentimental value like wedding rings and family portraits are exempt from seizure.

The bill also stipulates that asylum seekers must wait three years before they can apply to bring their families to Denmark, a provision that some advocates for refugees have criticized as inhumane.

As Europe confronts its greatest movement of refugees since World War II, even formerly open countries like Denmark are erecting barriers amid concerns that the newcomers could strain welfare systems, threaten security and undermine the nations’ quality of life.

Mirroring debates elsewhere in Europe, the debate in Denmark has been deeply influenced by a far-right populist party, the Danish People’s Party, which has been appealing to voters by warning against the perils of too much immigration.

Denmark’s prime minister has warned that the 1951 United Nations treaty governing the rights of refugees might need updating. After Sweden imposed identity checks for travelers coming from Denmark, Denmark did the same along its border with Germany. Hungary had already built a razor-wire fence along its border with Croatia.

“You are contributing to the separation that war creates,” Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen, a member of Parliament from the Red-Green Alliance, a leftist party, told Politiken, a leading Danish newspaper. The United Nations refugee agency has criticized the measure, saying it would undermine refugees’ dignity and set a bad example.

The bill’s proponents said the government was merely asking refugees to abide by the same requirements that Danish citizens face, namely that they use their own resources before being eligible for welfare benefits. They also pointed to precedents in Europe. Asylum seekers in Switzerland, for example, must declare their assets upon arrival and hand over those exceeding 1,000 Swiss francs, about $981, Reuters has reported, citing the Swiss broadcaster SRF.

German law requires asylum applicants to contribute to their living costs to the extent possible. This has been the case since the 1993 and, while all of the country’s 16 states allow asylum seekers to keep 200 euros ($217), each enforces the law differently.

While most states ask applicants to declare their cash and valuables when they submit their written application for asylum, only Bavaria has said that the police are allowed to search new arrivals for valuables. The state allows migrants to keep up to 750, about $813. It is not clear how much money has been taken from asylum seekers.

According to Dutch news reports, the government over the past four years has collected about $759,000 from asylum seekers to help pay for their lodging. The income has mostly come from working refugees, according to the website Dutch News. The policy has been in place since 2008, the report said. - Read More at the NYT

Danish Law Requires Asylum Seekers to Hand Over Valuables

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