Asylum request (3)

Sometimes asylumseekers submit more than one request for asylum. For second and subsequent requests, the authorities establish whether new facts or circumstances have come to light. If this is the case, the asylum request is reconsidered. A change in policy is also considered as a new fact.

The number of second and subsequent requests for asylum is difficult to establish. The Immigration and Naturalisation Service can distinguish between first and subsequent requests submitted after August 2006, but this is not possible for requests submitted in previous years.

In order to make the article more readable, the terms asylumseeker and asylum request are both used. As an asylumseeker may submit more than one request for asylum, strictly speaking the reader should take both terms to mean ‘asylum requests’.