Norway will soon strengthen the immigration rules for parents and underaged siblings of unaccompanied minor children who have been granted asylum in the country.
The Norwegian Ministry of Justice and Emergency Preparedness has already submitted a proposal to tighten some of the rules of the Immigration Act regarding family immigration.
According to the Ministry, the tightening of the rules for this group of people is important, as the changes will prevent family reunification with unaccompanied minor children in Norway if this is not in the best interest of the child who has been granted asylum, Schengen.News reports.
Some Children Granted Asylum Don’t Want to Live With Their Parents When They Come to Norway
In line with the current rules, parents and underage siblings of unaccompanied minor children holding asylum status in Norway can be granted a residence permit in Norway.
However, the Directorate of Immigration has recorded several cases when unaccompanied minor children granted asylum in Norway do not want to live with their parents when they come to the country.
As explained, such behaviour can be due to their experiencing fear of abuse, social controls, forced marriage, or other abuse from their family family members.
Commenting on the proposal, the Norwegian Minister of Justice and Emergency Preparedness Emilie Enger Mehl said that parents who are not able to provide proper care and who pose a threat to their children should not be eligible for family reunification.
The same stressed that the country’s aim is to ensure that unaccompanied minor children granted asylum in Norway feel safe in the country.
Proposal Aims to Tighten Some Other Immigration Rules, Too
In addition to the above-mentioned, changes to the law would mean that children who have created their own family in Norway will not be able to bring their parents to the country.
Moreover, it has been proposed that children granted asylum in Norway be permitted to reunite with their minor siblings only if they have consent from both parents.
As part of its measures, Norway also wants to make it impossible for parents to reunite with their unaccompanied minor children in Norway if, at the time of reunification, parents have two spouses in Norway.
By proposing to tighten these rules, the Norwegian authorities want to ensure that no threat is posed to the children and that there is no practice of bigamy within its territory.
Source: https://schengen.news/norway-to-tighten-immigration-rules-for-parents-minor-siblings-of-children-granted-asylum/
