Understanding Who Is Granted Asylum and How Their Reception Center Experiences Vary

Ane Tømmerås , Statistics Norway/Stockholm University

Reception centers and the welcoming of refugees had received much attention in Europe over the last decades. As the first point of interaction between the hosting country and asylum seekers, reception centers have potentially influence the individual’s further life and integration in their host country. Despite this, little quantitative research exist on the subject. Previous findings suggest that length of stay and relocation are negative for the asylum-seeker, while other aspects of the centers can be a facilitator. Using event-history analysis, this study aim at understanding the selection into who is granted asylum and how the reception center period vary for the asylum seekers. Using novel register data from Statistics Norway, this study follows 100 000 asylum-seekers from 2005 to 2015. Preliminary results indicate that country background, gender and year of arrival can all be important in explaining differences in the reception center experiences. Arriving in years with large arrival cohort sizes extends the reception center period and increases the number of average number of relocations. Individuals with country background from Somalia and Afghanistan on average have longer reception center stays, while Eritreans and Syrians moves more quickly through the system. Further analysis will among other include relocation and reception center characteristics.

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 Presented in Session 14. Flash session Migrant Populations