For migrants who are not allowed to remain in the Netherlands, counselling and reintegration assistance play a limited role in their return decisions. Such decisions are more strongly influenced by the conditions in the country of origin, family circumstances, and their social support networks in the Netherlands. Nevertheless, counselling and reintegration assistance can contribute significantly: they help migrants navigate complex legal procedures, offer practical and logistical support for return, and reduce vulnerabilities upon return in their home countries. Investing in these two mechanisms therefore remains a good choice to foster cooperation with return orders and support well-managed migration systems.
These are the conclusions of a study by the Migration Policy Institute Europe, commissioned by the WODC (Research and Data Centre). The study team analysed nearly 118,000 files provided by the Repatriation and Departure Service (DTenV), which yield insights into the return decision-making process among migrants ordered to leave the Netherlands, specifically the role played by reintegration assistance and counselling. In addition, the team held dozens of interviews with experts in the field, both in the Netherlands and abroad. They also spoke to Iraqi and Nigerian migrants who had returned to their countries of origin after being issued with a return order.
Factors in return decisions
Often, migrants who have received a return order still hope to obtain legal status. The social networks that they can draw on (and the help these networks provide) as well as the situation in the country of origin play an important role in their considerations on whether to stay or cooperate in leaving. Migrants’ families also play an important role. Some migrants return to reunite with relatives, to provide care for example. Others, however, are afraid of disappointing their families and adding to the pressures already faced by their families at home.
Migrants' decisions to return is also affected by:
- the length of their stay in the Netherlands: a prolonged stay without legal status reduces the likelihood of migrants opting for assisted return;
- the credibility of deportation: with countries where the Netherlands cooperates successfully, the likelihood of assisted return is somewhat higher. However, not all individuals respond in the same way to the risk of deportation, especially when the stigma or fear surrounding return are high.
Counselling and return pathways
In turn, the study shows that counselling is most likely to have an impact when it is timed strategically to migrants’ changing circumstances in the Netherlands. For some migrants, a return decision is made relatively autonomously, for example when deteriorating health or family responsibilities prompt a desire to go back. In such cases counselling mainly helps with clarifying procedures and arranging practical and reintegration support. Others accept return after a negative asylum decision, and counselling can focus on explaining the legal implications and help plan their departure. Finally, there are people who eventually accept to return out of a sense of hopelessness, often due to exhaustion after a prolonged irregular stay. These migrants typically require more intensive support, for example to access basic services, alongside return planning. Altogether, these different situations underline the need for a comprehensive approach to counselling that offers strategic guidelines for different migrant profiles and stages in their migration journey.
Measures to strengthen counselling
The study team lists four steps that could be taken to further improve counselling and reintegration assistance, such as:
- Prioritise counselling at key decision-making moments, such as after a negative asylum decision. Migrants might then be more receptive to cooperate with leaving orders. The study team also encourages counsellors to establish open conversations which acknowledge the emotional gravity of the return decision.
- Engage a diverse network of counselling partners and approaches to respond to different migrant profiles. Approaches vary from counselling aimed at encouraging compliance with leaving orders to broader case-resolution support that explores durable solutions, whether return or regularisation. Civil society organisations are often well placed to reach hard-to-reach groups and migrants with long irregular stays.
- Expand country- and diaspora-specific knowledge among counsellors, especially about the situation in countries of origin, to build trust and engage in meaningful exchange with migrants.
- Work closely with trusted partners in countries of origin, particularly through professional reintegration service providers. This can stimulate more constructive discussions about return and increase the likelihood of successful reintegration. Family or community members could also offer assistance to returning migrants.
The study findings highlight the value of expanding (or at least maintaining) counselling and reintegration assistance. They also underline the advantages of investing in government partners (such as civil society organisations), training caseworkers who counsel migrants, and providing assistance in the country of origin that supports sustainable livelihoods and contributes to local development.
WODC wrote this notice about this report. Text only available in Dutch.