Dublin Information Exchange Centre established at the Finnish Immigration Service

A national contact point, ‘Dublin Information Exchange Centre’, has been established at the Finnish Immigration Service. It exchanges information with other countries that apply the Dublin Regulation and coordinates the exchange of information between authorities in Finland.

The centre was established within a project that was launched last year with support from the European Refugee Fund. The project ended at the end of June.

During the project, new procedures were established for information exchange in situations where

• the asylum seeker is an unaccompanied minor who has family ties in EU member states
• the applicant is dependent on his or her family member who resides in another EU member state
• the applicant is to be transferred to another state.

Here, a relationship of dependency refers to a situation where an asylum seeker is dependent on the assistance of his or her family member, or his or her family member is dependent on the asylum seeker, for example due to pregnancy, illness or old age.

The cooperation between the Finnish Immigration Service, the police and the Border Guard, which all take part in the asylum procedure, was enhanced through training and instructions as well as by developing the information systems. The cooperation with the representatives of unaccompanied minors and the reception centres was also made closer.

Asylum seekers in a vulnerable position will especially benefit from the project

All asylum applications that are submitted in Finland are not examined in Finland. When an asylum application arrives at the Finnish Immigration Service after the police has carried out its initial investigations, the Finnish Immigration Service will determine with regard to the Dublin Regulation whether Finland is responsible for examining the application or whether the applicant is to be transferred to another country in Europe. The member state where the applicant has family members or which has had the most significant role in the applicant arriving in the EU is usually responsible for examining the asylum application.

Due to the new procedures that have now been developed, more attention can be paid to the best interest of the child, family unity and relationships of dependency when determining the state responsible for examining an asylum application. If an asylum seeker is to be transferred to another country, his or her state of health and other special needs will also be better taken into account in connection with the transfer.

Obligation to improve information exchange in the background

The revised Dublin Regulation, i.e. the regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on determining the state responsible for examining an asylum application, lies behind the project. It obliges the states in the Common European Asylum System to exchange information more widely.

The primary aim was to improve the quality and efficiency of the asylum procedure by enhancing the cooperation between the authorities and by improving the exchange of information between the countries that participate in the Dublin system.

During the project, the Finnish Immigration Service actively cooperated, for example, within the networks of the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) and with other Nordic countries.

Further information for the media:

Kaj Swanljung, Project Manager, Asylum Unit, tel. +358 295 430 431, e-mail: firstname.lastname@migri.fi