Family Matters: The Impact of National Policies on Asylum Destinations

Abstract

In political and academic debates, a knowledge gap exists regarding the impact of different strands of national policies on the number of asylum arrivals. This article analyzes the effects of policy reforms on the distribution of asylum seekers among a group of major European receiving countries. More specifically, we study significant changes in the legislation that regulate the following three areas: (i) access to the asylum procedure, (ii) the asylum processing, and (iii) the family reunification and family formation. Empirically, we study how national reforms within these policy areas in nine Northwestern European destination countries affect the distribution of yearly outflows from 48 countries of origin, during the period 1985 to 2015. Applying a statistical approach, which accounts for simultaneous changes in other destination countries’ asylum policies, we conclude that more restrictive legislation appears to have significant effects on the distribution of asylum seekers among destination countries. In relative terms, restrictions that make reunification with current and future family less probable have the strongest negative influence, followed by tightening of the rules that govern the outcome of the asylum procedures.