Today, the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg rendered its judgment in a case concerning an Eritrean client represented by our firm who had to repay a large sum of money to the Dutch Education Executive Agency (in Dutch: Dienst Uitvoering Onderwijs, or 'DUO') because he had not completed his civic integration process within the deadline of three years. The Court held that European law precludes the Dutch rules on the mandatory repayment of a government loan and the imposition of high fines in such a case.
The Court holds that the requirement to repay the loan of €10,000 and an additional fine of €500, as was the case for our client, is in conflict with European law. The Court emphasizes how high the costs of this loan are, and considers that having to pay the full costs of integration courses and exams is in conflict with European law.
According to the Court, it does not matter whether the loan can be waived if the asylum status holder manages to complete their civic integration process within three years. The Court also held that European law opposes punishing an asylum status holder with a fine simply because they did not manage to complete their civic integration process in time. The financial burden is too high and should only be imposed in exceptional cases.
The Court further held that European rules do allow for mandatory integration courses in order to learn the language and culture, and that there can be an obligation to pass a civic integration exam. However, this process must be carried out in a reasonable manner. That means taking into account the special needs and circumstances of the asylum status holders, amongst others, their age, level of education, financial circumstances or health.
Our client was assisted in this case by lawyer Eva Bezem.
Link to the judgment can be found here.