Denmark OKs bill to seize assets from refugees: Know more about it

Denmark's Immigration Minister Inger Stoejberg speaks in the Danish Parliament.

Copenhagen: Denmark`s Parliament on Tuesday adopted reforms aimed at stemming the flow of refugees. Lawmakers in Copenhagen voted 81-27 in favour of the new austerity measures aiming to make the country less attractive for refugees and migrants.

Here are the details of the controversial migrant bill:

• The bill empowers the authorities to confiscate valuables of asylum seekers to finance their stay in the country.
• Asylum-seekers will now have to hand over cash exceeding 10,000 kroner (EUR 1,340, USD 1,450) and any individual items valued at more than that amount, up from the initial 3,000 kroner proposed.
• Wedding rings and any other items of sentimental value are exempted.
• It also favours delaying family re-unifications for some refugees by up to three years instead of one year, and making it harder for refugees to obtain permanent residency and to shorten temporary resident permits.

Since the submission of the bill, Denmark has been hitting by a wave of criticism both at home and abroad, with refugee agency UNHCR claiming it violates the European Convention on Human Rights, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the UN Refugee Convention.

In 2015, Denmark received about 21,000 refugees, making it one of the top EU destinations per capita for migrants after Finland, Austria, Germany and Sweden.