Low influx of asylum seekers leads to drop refugee centres capacity

The Finnish Immigration Service ( Migri) has decided to reduce the capacities of six refugee reception centres by 153 beds following the low influx of asylum seekers in Finland, said Migri in a press release on Thursday.

According to Migri, last year saw comparatively few new arrivals of asylum seekers, with 1,277 first asylum applications submitted.

The number of new arrivals has also been low this year, as 356 new asylum applications were lodged between January and June 2021. ¨

Afghan, Iraqi, and Somali nationals topped the list of new asylum applicants.

‘As international travel has become easier since spring, the number of asylum applicants has seen a slight increase in Finland and elsewhere. Despite the uptick, application volumes are still clearly below pre-pandemic levels,” said Migri Asylum Unit Director Antti Lehtinen.

The total number of asylum applications lodged during the first half of the year was 1,032. In addition to new applications for asylum, 676 subsequent applications were submitted.

‘The decrease in application volumes as a result of the coronavirus pandemic has made it easier to clear the backlog of applications that had accumulated’, said Lehtinen.

The Finnish Immigration Service is set to scale down capacity at six reception centres by a total of 153 beds.

‘We expect an increase in the number of asylum seekers as pandemic restrictions are phased out. It makes operational and financial sense to adjust the capacity of existing reception centres rather than shut them down and establish new centres later’, said Kimmo Lehto, Head of Section at Migri Reception Unit.

Some 5,160 asylum seekers are currently registered in the reception system, with about 2,250 of them living in reception centres. The number of available beds currently stands at around 1,100, of which some 250 are extra beds. During the coronavirus pandemic, the need for beds has decreased by approximately 140 per month.

The Migri aims for a reception centre capacity that corresponds to the existing need, with the average occupancy rate target currently at 75 per cent.

In addition to the capacity reductions, the operations of three reception centres will see changes at the end of the year.

The Lammi reception centre will be renamed the Hämeenlinna reception centre as its operations are relocated to the centre of that city. The Jyväskylä reception centre will be converted into an apartment-based centre, while the Mikkeli reception centre will combine institutional and apartment-based accommodation.

The capacity of Joutseno Reception Centre reduced by 50 beds and Oulu Reception Centre by 60 beds from August 1, Hämeenkyrö Hybrid Unit will be reduced by 10 beds, Kotka Hybrid Unit by 8 beds and Oravais Hybrid Unit by 5 beds from 1 October.

The capacity of Jyväskylä Reception Centre, Finnish Red Cross. Capacity reduced by 20 beds. New capacity 150 beds in apartment-based accommodation as from 1 January 2022.