The Poor Integration Results of the Common European Asylum System Compared to the Temporary Protection Directive: The Case of the Netherlands

Taking the case of the Netherlands, we compare integration outcomes of the traditional asylum reception system (implementing the Refugee Convention), applied to, for example, Syrians and Afghans, and the EU’s Temporary Protection Directive (TPD) which is applied to Ukrainians. We show that the TPD is not just less costly for receiving countries but also results in much faster labor market integration. While rapid integration is an important policy goal, the traditional asylum system is not effective, and talents are underutilized. We show how spatial and temporal aspects of the asylum procedures for Common European Asylum System (CEAS) refugees lead to slow integration, while Ukrainians under TPD work immediately and can build connections in Dutch society.