Photo credit: KNEWS
The Swedish government has ordered several agencies to monitor refugees’ travel patterns to ensure that asylum protection is not abused by those who may no longer need it.
EURACTIV reports that the country’s migrant agency, in collaboration with the police and Swedish embassies, has been tasked with developing new procedures for exchanging information about these trips.
On Thursday, the migration minister Johan Forssell said, “If someone has been granted asylum because they are fleeing a country, it’s strange if they travel back there. It raises questions about whether they still need protection or if false information was provided initially.”
There has been a growing public and political debate about refugees holidaying in their home countries. A 2022 Novus survey for the Swedish online publication “Bulletin” found that 79% of refugees in Sweden said they had returned to their home countries for holidays.
Forsell added that the results of this initiative are expected to be presented next summer. At the same time, discussions on adjusting residence and travel laws, including possible revisions to the time limits for revoking residence permits, will continue in Sweden.
