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iBorderCtrl envisages to enable faster thorough border control for third country nationals crossing the borders of EU, with technologies that adopt the future development of the Schengen Border Management. The project will present an optimal mixture of an enhanced, voluntary form of a Registered Traveller Programme and an auxiliary solution for the Entry/Exit System based on involving bona fide travellers. iBorderCtrl designs and implements a system that adopts mobility concepts and consists of a two-stage procedure, designed to reduce cost/time spent per traveller at the crossing station. It leverages software and hardware technologies ranging from portable readers/scanners, various emerging and novel subsystems for automatic controls, wireless networking for mobile controls, and secure backend storage and processing. The two-stage procedure includes: (A) the registration before the travel to gather initial personal, travel document and vehicle data, perform a short, automated, non-invasive interview with an avatar, subject to lie detection and link the traveller to any pre-existing authority data. Utilizing multifactor analytics and risk-based approach, the data registered is processed and correlated with publicly open data or external systems such as the SIS II. Processing will need the travellers consent as set in EU legislation and national law. (B) the actual control at the border that complements pre-registered information with results of security controls that are performed with a portable, wireless connected iBorderCtrl unit that can be used inside buses/trains or any point. Multiple technologies check validity and authenticity of parameters (e.g. travel documents, visa, face recognition of traveller using passport picture, real-time automated non-invasive lie detection in interview by officer, etc.). The data collected are encrypted, securely transferred and analysed in real time, providing an automated decision support system for the border control officers.

Bij de beoordeling van asielverzoeken is informatie over de situatie in het land van herkomst van de asielzoeker van groot belang. Dergelijke informatie helpt namelijk bij het beantwoorden van de vraag of de asielzoeker in aanmerking komt voor een asielvergunning. De Immigratieen Naturalisatiedienst (IND) gebruikt hiervoor meestal rapporten die het ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken opstelt, de zogeheten ‘ambtsberichten’. Wanneer geen, dan wel geen recente, ambtsberichten over een land zijn verschenen (in 2018 betrof dit bijna de helft van de eerste asielaanvragen) betrekt de IND vaak landeninformatie uit andere bronnen bij de beoordeling van asielverzoeken. Er zijn namelijk ook andere organisaties die rapporten opstellen over de situatie in landen van herkomst van asielzoekers die in meer of mindere mate gelijkenis vertonen met de ambtsberichten. Daarnaast is er informatie beschikbaar via bijvoorbeeld nieuwsberichten. De staatssecretaris van Justitie en Veiligheid heeft de Adviescommissie voor Vreemdelingenzaken (ACVZ) om advies gevraagd over de vraag hoe de IND bij het ontbreken van een algemeen ambtsbericht het beste gebruik kan maken van deze andere bronnen van informatie. De staatssecretaris ervaart het namelijk als een probleem dat het gebruik van andere bronnen van landeninformatie dan de ambtsberichten niet op een transparante manier is ingebed in het beleidsproces, de uitvoering en de rechtsbescherming. Het is niet duidelijk wanneer een dergelijke bron wel of niet gebruikt kan worden en wanneer een bron als betrouwbaar kan worden aangemerkt. Ook vraagt ze of het mogelijk is om een rangorde aan te brengen in de bronnen. In dit advies beantwoorden wij de volgende adviesvraag: Hoe kunnen bij het ontbreken van een (actueel) ambtsbericht andere openbare bronnen van landeninformatie zo goed mogelijk gebruikt worden in het beleids- en besluitvormingsproces, de uitvoering en rechtsbescherming en in hoeverre is hierin een rangorde aan te brengen? De centrale vraag beantwoorden we aan de hand van de volgende deelvragen: 1) Welke criteria zijn in wet- en regelgeving, jurisprudentie en literatuur te onderscheiden voor de beoordeling en het gebruik van landeninformatie?; 2) Wat wordt momenteel bij het ontbreken van een ambtsbericht als bruikbare en onbruikbare bron aangemerkt om de (veiligheids)situatie in landen van herkomst te beoordelen? Hoe wordt hiermee omgegaan door beleid/uitvoering/rechtspraak?; 3) Wat is de werkwijze en rol van het European Asylum Support Office (EASO) op het gebied van het verzamelen, weergeven en beoordelen van landeninformatie? ; 4) Op welke landeninformatie baseren andere Europese landen hun beleidsproces, uitvoering en rechtsbescherming?; 5) Wat zijn de voor- en nadelen van het gebruik van andere openbare landeninformatie dan de ambtsberichten? Voor het beantwoorden van de adviesvraag hebben we een jurisprudentie- en literatuuronderzoek verricht, 54 IND-dossiers bestudeerd en beleidsmedewerkers, wetenschappers en vertegenwoordigers van belangenorganisaties geconsulteerd.

Operational management of the second generation Schengen Information System (SIS II) which entered into operation on 09 April 2013 replacing SIS1. SIS II, the largest information system for public security in Europe, allows information exchanges between national border control, customs and police authorities ensuring that the free movement of people within the EU can take place in a safe environment. It also contains alerts on missing persons, in particular children, as well as information on certain property, such as banknotes, cars, vans, firearms and identity documents that may have been stolen, misappropriated or lost. Currently SIS II is used by 29 countries (25 EU MS + 4 Associated Countries). 25 EU: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. Associated Countries connected to SIS II are: Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. Statistics are available to the public as analyses presented in studies on annual basis. **Statistics of interest:** Refusals of entry -> statistics on alerts art 24 SIS II Regulation “refused entry or stay in the Schengen area when the authorities had already made a decision that they should not enter”

Since 1993, all nationals of the EU Member States hold EU citizenship, which entails the right to move and reside freely within EU territory. Since 1999, immigration has been a matter of shared competence between the EU and its Member States. The EU increasingly faces the question whether this common immigration policy as well as the common status of EU citizenship do not also require harmonization of the rules on acquisition and loss of nationality, or even the transfer of national competences to the EU, because the nationality law rules of individual Member States can be used to circumvent the common EU migration policy. In fact, a considerable number of Member States grant particular groups of people (former emigrants and their descendants living outside the EU, co-ethnics in neighbouring countries that are not part of the EU) facilitated access to their nationality and also encourage dual nationality. The link of these ‘external EU citizens’ with the EU is often very weak. At the same time, there are large numbers of EU resident people who continue to suffer the hardship of being stateless because they cannot qualify for the nationality of an EU Member State. Both the facilitated access to the EU through dual nationality and the vulnerable position of EU resident stateless persons gives the EU a strong interest in interfering with Member State autonomy in nationality law. The proposal will study global trends regarding dual nationality and statelessness by investigating how North America, and to a lesser extent Latin America, deal with these phenomena. For that purpose, research missions will be conducted on both continents. The results are compared with European data already collected by the applicant and the EUDO citizenship project. As nationality law will increasingly become a policy concern to the EU, the applicant’s global research will contribute to both the academic and policy-orientated debate on the future role of the EU in matters of nationality law.

Objectives: The overall objective of the project is to develop solutions for protracted displacement situations (PDS) that are better tailored to the needs and capacities of persons affected by displacement. Current policies struggle to find solutions to forced displacement. Refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) are often stuck in ‘limbo’, i.e. living in situations of vulnerability, dependency and immobility, due to continuous cycles of displacement and a lack of durable options. The project will therefore aim at answering the questions whether and how PDS, dependency and vulnerability are related to the factors of connectivity and mobility. It will further look at how in turn, connectivity and mobility can be operationalized to enhance the self-reliance and resilience of displaced people. Summary: Protracted displacement situations are estimated to affect about 13 million individuals globally, approximately two-thirds of the 20 million refugees today. PDS affects both refugees who have left their countries of origin as well as internally displaced individuals subsisting in precarious living conditions and seeking stability and safety with no prospects of local integration, resettlement, or safe return. TRAFIG will conduct its research by analysing specific sites of exhibited protracted displacement situations throughout Asia, Africa and Europe in order to better understand the daily lives and challenges of those living in PDS, and to ultimately devise new and creative approaches for the alleviation of these problems. Moreover, TRAFIG seeks to explore the relationship between connectivity and mobility, and the realities of protracted displacement situations which increase vulnerability in order to understand how PDS can be challenged. ICMPD’s policy unit leads the stakeholder engagement and dialogue with policymakers and further seeks innovative options for the exploitation of results. In addition, the unit examines governance frameworks on displacement at the European and global level. Project Partners: BICC (Bonn International Center for Conversion), Addis Ababa University, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, CMI (Chr. Michelsen Institute), Danube University Krems, Dignity Kwanza – Community Solutions, FIERI (Forum of International and European Research on Immigration), ICMPD (International Centre for Migration Policy Development), SHARP (Society for Human Rights & Prisoners’ Aid), Universiteit Leiden, University of Sussex, Yarmouk University

DemandAT is an interdisciplinary research project funded under the EU Seventh Framework Programme. The project brings together nine partners across seven European countries to investigate approaches to addressing and reducing demand for trafficking in human beings through anti-trafficking efforts and policies. While responses to trafficking have traditionally focused on combating the criminal networks involved in trafficking or protecting the human rights of victims, European countries are increasingly exploring ways of influencing demand for the services or products of those trafficked within their own economies and societies – for example, through criminalising clients, better control of recruitment agencies, or fair trade campaigns. DemandAT contributes to a better understanding of how policymakers can influence demand for trafficking and actively engages with EU and national level policymakers. The project benefits from continuous stakeholder interaction and is informed by a stakeholder advisory board comprising representatives from the Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women, the International Organization for Migration, the International Trade Union Confederation, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the United Nationas Office for Drugs and Crime amongst others. The project’s research takes a broad approach to trafficking analysing a range of forced and exploitative labour scenarios. It explores what demand means in the context of trafficking in human beings conceptually and examines how demand for products and services provided by trafficked women, men and children operates in practice. The measures implemented to reduce demand for trafficking are analysed and their efficacy in reducing demand is assessed. Insights are drawn from related areas to develop a broader perspective of the range of regulatory options that exist for influencing demand for trafficking in human beings. Research Phases The research is structured into three, interlocking, phases: Phase 1: Analysis of the theoretical and empirical literature on demand for trafficking in human beings and regulating demand in different disciplines, fields and countries. This includes economic and genealogical analysis of the concept of demand and a comprehensive overview of demand in different forms of trafficking. January 2014-June 2015. Phase 2: Involves three in-depth empirical case studies on different trafficking fields: domestic work, prostitution and imported goods. A further two case studies will be conducted investigating different policy approaches: law enforcement actors and campaigns. September 2014-December 2016. Phase 3: The final phase involved integrating the project insights into a coherent framework with a focus on dissemination. January 2017-June 2017. Research Areas The project is divided into a series of work packages that cover different aspects of trafficking and examine different measures for addressing demand for trafficking in human beings. The substantive work packages include: The Concept of Demand Researchers at the University of Bremen lead on developing an analysis of the meaning and implications of demand from a genealogical and economic perspective; exploring the conceptual foundations of the debate on demand in trafficking. January 2014- June 2015. Policy Instruments in Steering Demand Researchers at the University of Edinburgh provide a conceptual analysis of the regulatory tools available for steering demand drawing on related fields to examine measures to steer demand for lower cost goods/services and for illicit goods/services. January 2014 – June 2015. Demand in Different Forms of Trafficking in Human Beings Researchers at La Strada International lead a systematic review of the literature on demand-side factors and demand-side policies. This review is conducted in relation to trafficking for the purposes of: the commercial sex market, labour exploitation, forced begging, forced/servile marriages, forced criminal activities and illegal organ removal. January 2014 – June 2015. Government Responses: Comparative Country Analysis Researchers at International Centre for Migration Policy Development provide a comparative overview of the development and implementation of policies targeting demand for trafficking in selected EU and non-EU countries. This includes an analysis of the debates on the expected and actual outcomes of demand related policies. January 2014 – June 2015. Domestic Work Researchers at the European University Institute investigate types of domestic work that involve extreme forms of exploitation focusing on the dynamics between demand and supply with a view to proposing improved policy options for combatting trafficking and exploitation in domestic work. The countries studied are: Belgium, Cyprus, France, Greece, Italy, the Netherlands and the UK. September 2014 – December 2016. Globalised production of Goods Researchers at the University of Durham evaluate the impact of existing initiatives to address trafficking and forced labour in global supply chains. Field research in non-EU countries will inform the development of industry-specific strategies to address trafficking and forced labour in supply chains. September 2014 – December 2016. Prostitution Researchers at Lund University conduct a comparative analysis of how demand for trafficking is tackled in different policy approaches to prostitution. Germany, New Zealand and Sweden provide case studies for different policy models on prostitution. January 2014 – December 2016 Law Enforcement Actors Researchers at DCAF lead in developing a better understanding of the role, potential and limits of law enforcement actors in addressing demand for trafficking. The analysis focuses on security sector actors (police, border guards, judges and prosecutors) and labour inspectorates. September 2014 – December 2016 Addressing Demand with Smart Campaigns Researchers at the University of Bremen lead in evaluating anti-trafficking campaigns and developing a method for assessing their impact in reducing demand for trafficking in order to inform the planning, implementation and evaluation of such campaigns. September 2014 – December 2016.

Domestic work has been of particular significance in the Cypriot labour market and in particular its migrant workforce. Over the past two decades, thousands of migrant women have flown into the country to work as domestic workers for private households. Most of them stay in the country for several years, on a so-called “domestic worker’s” visa, a rather restrictive kind of permit that ties them to specific employers. A standard employment contract, prepared by the Migration Department lays down their wages, duties and rights; one of these being the prohibition to join trade unions. Throughout this process, potential domestic workers are normally aided by private employment agencies that act as intermediates with the employer – often at a very high fee. The overall setting aims to balance diverse and sometimes conflicting interests within a small economy and society, bound by its international commitments. To the external observer, however, Cyprus seems to be contradicting its own efforts. Its migration scheme appears in multiple ways susceptible to misuse. Stories about exploitation and abuse are indeed not uncommon. In many respects however, Cyprus’ case brings to the fore existing gaps and loopholes when the EU common standards are transposed into the national order.

The index is based on the reports of the monitoring body of the Council of Europe Convention against Human Trafficking. GRETA stands for the Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings. It assesses compliance with 35 policy requirements on legal institutional framework, assistance protection, enforcement, prevention. Main focus: institutional capacity and operational performance of law enforcement. Restricted access.

‘Consistency’ is regularly cited as a desirable attribute of border control, but it has received little critical social scientific attention. This inter-disciplinary project, at the inter-face between critical human geography, border studies and law, will scrutinise the consistency of European asylum adjudication in order to develop richer theoretical understanding of this lynchpin concept. It will move beyond the administrative legal concepts of substantive and procedural consistency by advancing a three-fold conceptualisation of consistency – as everyday practice, discursive deployment of facts and disciplinary technique. In order to generate productive intellectual tension it will also employ an explicitly antagonistic conceptualisation of the relationship between geography and law that views law as seeking to constrain and systematise lived space. The project will employ an innovative combination of methodologies that will produce unique and rich data sets including quantitative analysis, multi-sited legal ethnography, discourse analysis and interviews, and the findings are likely to be of interest both to academic communities like geographers, legal and border scholars and to policy makers and activists working in border control settings. In 2013 the Common European Asylum System (CEAS) was launched to standardise the procedures of asylum determination. But as yet no sustained multi-methodological assessment of the claims of consistency inherent to the CEAS has been carried out. This project offers not only the opportunity to assess progress towards harmonisation of asylum determination processes in Europe, but will also provide a new conceptual framework with which to approach the dilemmas and risks of inconsistency in an area of law fraught with political controversy and uncertainty around the world. Most fundamentally, the project promises to debunk the myths surrounding the possibility of fair and consistent border controls in Europe and elsewhere.