Refugees to get more support for voluntary return

The government is going to increase financial supports for the refugees who will voluntarily return to their countries.

In future, the maximum amount of financial assistance granted to adults who decide to return to their home countries voluntarily could be EUR 1,500, and to accompanying minors EUR 750.

The relevant interior ministry decree enters into force on 25 September and will remain in force until the end of 2018, said an official press release on Thursday.

Previously, the maximum amount of financial assistance was EUR 1,000 for adults and EUR 600 for minors. In addition to cash, assistance may also be paid in kind or as a combination of these two.

In-kind assistance may consist of various goods or services, such as helping the person to find work. The maximum amount of in-kind assistance may be EUR 2,500 for voluntarily returning adults and EUR 1,500 for accompanying minors.

Combined assistance, consisting of cash, goods and services, offers better opportunities for returnees to reintegrate.

Returnees receiving in-kind assistance pay several visits to the office of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) or some other relevant service provider in their home countries and, at the same time, receive the necessary advice and support for their return.

Voluntary return assistance may be given, for instance, to third country citizens who have sought international protection and who leave Finland voluntarily and permanently after cancelling their application or after their asylum application has been rejected.

By increasing the maximum amount of return assistance, Finland would bring the assistance payable to returnees more in line with the assistance available in the other EU countries. The EU has launched a pilot project which aims to harmonise the amounts of assistance granted for voluntary return within the EU. The project has proposed that the amount of return assistance be EUR 2,500.

Assistance for voluntary return may cover the costs of the return journey and financial assistance to enable the returning immigrant to start a new life in the home country. Assistance may be financial or consist of various goods or services helping the person to start a small business or secure entry to a degree programme or find a place to live, for example.

The assistance is granted by the Finnish Immigration Service or the relevant reception centre. Returns are carried out with the assistance of IOM. When deciding on the amount of assistance, consideration is given to the personal circumstances of the returnee and the conditions in the returnee’s home country. Granting assistance for voluntary return requires that a plan has been made regarding the use of assistance.

In 2016, the number of voluntary returnees totalled 2,113. By the end of August 2017, a total of 1,034 people had returned to their home countries voluntarily. Of these, 79 per cent returned to Iraq.