Research
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Projektmethode Auswertung von Asylzugangsdaten Projektziel Auswirkung der Aussetzung der Vorrangprüfung auf den Arbeitsmarkt

Luxembourg has a long tradition in “resettling” refugees from various parts of the world, but a more structured policy has only recently been implemented. National legislation does not include any provisions relating to resettlement policy and there are no specific national programmes. The resettlements have always been implemented on an ad-hoc basis or within broader programmes set up by the European Commission and/or UNHCR. Since 2014, Luxembourg additionally applies a quota of refugees to be annually resettled (15-20 persons). The implementation and organisation of the resettlement process may vary case by case and there is no standardised procedure applicable except for regular resettlements for which the framework is to a large extent outlined in the UNHCR’s Resettlement Handbook. The selection and identification of resettled persons is coordinated by the Directorate of Immigration in close collaboration with UNHCR, who performs in principle an eligibility assessment for the refugee status, which the Luxembourgish authorities shall take over once the person arrives in Luxembourg. For each resettlement mission Luxembourg sets a general profile as well as the number of persons they intend to resettle. These criteria do basically not differ from UNHCR’s Global Resettlement Submission Criteria and thus include women, children, elderly refugees as well as refugees with disabilities and diseases, except for those suffering from pathologies for which there is no adequate treatment available in Luxembourg. Apart from the vulnerability criteria, Luxembourgish authorities also take the “integration potential” into consideration when selecting candidates eligible for resettlements. This might explain the general preference of resettling entire families rather than single persons. Resettlement implemented within the EU Turkey 1:1 scheme, based on the agreement between the EU and Turkey of 18 March 2016, is considered separately by national authorities. For UNHCR, who is not a party to this agreement, engagement in the resettlement of Syrian refugees from Turkey is considered part of its regular resettlement activities. Procedurally, UNHCR continues to receive resettlement referrals from Turkey’s Directorate General for Migration Management (DGMM) and further continues to undertake phone and face-to-face interviews with eligible candidates. However, as opposed to regular resettlement, the assessment undertaken by UNHCR is streamlined. The Luxembourgish Reception and Integration Agency (OLAI) coordinates the reception and integration phase of the resettled refugees. Although policy and law are the same for both, resettled refugees and other beneficiaries of international protection, in practice the support provided may differ in an initial phase. Thus, resettled refugees are accommodated upon arrival within a common reception centre where they shall be provided with a more intense support, especially during the first weeks after their arrival in Luxembourg. Since April 2016, a newly created service of the Luxembourgish Red Cross (Lisko) has been mandated, under the overall coordination of the Ministry of Family, Integration and the Greater Region, to take charge of the social support and integration of benefeciciaries of international protection, including resettled persons. Other national NGOs and associations also provide counselling and assistance. The present report identifies several challenges faced by both, the resettled persons as well as the competent authorities. These challenges prove particular significant in the post-arrival and integration phase. While some of these challenges are common to beneficiaries of international protection in general, some others may be more specifically relevant for resettled refugees, namely the absence of a transition period, coordination with local stakeholders, as well as timely provision of information to selected candidates for resettlement.

This project will generate the first ever theoretically and empirically-grounded comparative and comprehensive picture of the status and legal experiences of asylum-seekers across Europe claiming international protection on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity (SOGI), and determine how the European asylum systems can treat more fairly asylum claims based on the claimant’s SOGI. Every year, thousands of individuals claim asylum in Europe based on their SOGI, and more often than not their claims are treated unfairly, especially considering the disproportionately high rate of refusals on these grounds. There have been very limited attempts to address this issue, and this research will overcome this gap by carrying out a study more comprehensive than any other done in this field in the past, and producing outcomes that are unparalleled in terms of their reach. My main objectives are: 1) to analyse how SOGI related claims are adjudicated in different asylum legal European frameworks (EU, CoE, Germany, Italy, UK), and 2) to produce detailed policy recommendations in regard to the national, European Union and Council of Europe asylum adjudication systems, to the effect of developing a system that addresses adequately the socio-cultural, gender identity and sexual diversity of asylum-seekers. For the first time, a combined comparative, interdisciplinary (socio-legal), human rights and empirical approach will be adopted to research this field, which requires a substantial long period of research and sustained funding. This approach ensures the unique character of the findings and their impact on improving the current law, policy and decision-making regarding SOGI asylum claims, which are increasingly under close scrutiny across Europe. I am in a unique position to achieve these objectives, in the light of my experience with publications , projects and NGOs in the field of human rights and refugees from socio-legal, empirical and European perspectives.

Fertility indicators for 45 European countries. Main indicators of fertility level: total fertility rate; mean ideal number of children; completed Cohort fertility; childlessness; share of births outside marriage. Indicators of fertility timing: mean age first birth; Fertility of immigrants: total fertility rate of foreign born women; total fertility rate of native born women; SUGGESTED CITATION: Tomáš Sobotka, Kryštof Zeman, Michaela Potančoková, Jakob Eder, Zuzanna Brzozowska, Éva Beaujouan, Anna Matysiak (2015). Fertility Datasheet 2015. Vienna Institute of Demography / Wittgenstein Centre for Demography and Global Human Capital (IIASA, VID/ÖAW, WU).