This policy brief examines the effects of EU Member States’ integration policy frameworks upon the long-term integration prospects of refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine. Drawing on NIEM data, the brief makes the point that the status of countries’ overall refugee integration frameworks clearly has repercussions for the ability of member states to adapt to the new circumstances of a massive refugee movement from Ukraine.
In doing so, it finds that most countries’ integration policy frameworks are not adequately prepared for the largescale arrival of refugees, in particular those which have seen the largest number of arrivals. In concluding, the brief outlines two potential future scenarios on how the activation of the EU temporary protection directive will impact on the EU asylum and integration debate. While in the first scenario the situation will be marked by entrenched positions, in the second scenario a reset of the debate would lead to better harmonised refugee integration policies in the EU.

This study analyses the reception, adaptation, and integration of refugees in the Czech Republic. It focuses on applicants for international protection and people who have already been granted one of the forms of international protection, i.e., asylum or subsidiary protection. The report does not aim to capture the integration process in all its complexity – such is the ambition of other publications within the NIEM project – but rather to complement such a comprehensive picture with the experiences of individuals.

In contrast to texts based primarily on analyses of legislation, strategic documents, or ministerial statistics, this study seeks primarily to convey the perspective of the refugees themselves. It captures their impressions of the first days after their arrival in the Czech Republic, looks at their involvement in the State Integration Programme2, and describes the most important challenges that both applicants and holders face in the later stages of their integration into local society.

This analysis maps the availability of data supporting evidence-based refugee integration policymaking as measured by 44 NIEM indicators. Pointing to widespread data gaps across the NIEM countries, the report shows to what extent governments dispose of a statistical knowledge base for developing, implementing and evaluating their policies.

The third NIEM European report compares developments in 14 countries in the 2019 to 2021 period and highlights key overall results. Policy gaps and best practices identified in this research are intended to inform authorities, civil society and experts and to stimulate debate on how to reform refugee integration based on evidence. Special attention is given to integration outcomes as well as the impact of the covid-19 pandemic in the involved countries. 
 

This study analyzes the educational situation of students with refugee experience in three countries: the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary. What is presented within its framework are the educational systems of individual countries in the scope of educating children under international protection and asylum seekers and the instruments supporting integration and educational policies of a given country towards the integration of this group of students. The main challenges faced by the educational systems of individual countries are also discussed and - due to the time of preparing this analysis – there is a description of the situation of students with refugee experience during the COVID-19 epidemic. The summary formulates the basic conclusions drawn from the comparison of the situation in the Czech Republic, Poland and Hungary, along with recommendations for the educational policies of these countries.

The current analysis focuses on the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and measures the national governments implemented with the aim to manage the health crisis on asylum and reception systems in Hungary, Slovakia and Poland. The authors provide an overview of the countries’ asylum and reception systems and their functioning under the general COVID-19 preventive epidemiological measures. Due to the dynamic changes related to epidemiological situations in selected countries, the current analysis relates to the period from March 2020 until July 2021. While the crisis situation was present in Autumn 2021, awareness of systemic challenges and inequalities is important in order to maintain procedural guarantees during the asylum procedure, provide appropriate solutions and safeguard the wellbeing of asylum seekers in the region.

This report presents key 2019 data as they are reflected in the scored outcome of research conducted in the 10 assessed countries; shows general results regarding legal and policy indicators pointing out the main trends and weakness across all the countries; presents in detail key results in three macro-dimensions analysed (legal-status integration, socio economic and socio cultural integration).

This MPG policy brief investigates to what extent the refugee integration policies analysed in NIEM are in line with the principles, values, and objectives of the EU Action Plan on Integration and Inclusion (2021-2027). Policymakers and stakeholders may identify areas in which the EU Action Plan can help to address policy gaps and needs. Using NIEM results can also help to assess the success of the Action Plan in the coming years. Specific recommendations to the European Commission and Member States suggest how to foster the implementation of the Action Plan and make it more effective.