Police in Denmark can now seize $1500 in valuables from asylum-seekers

The Danish Parliament voted Tuesday to let immigration authorities seize valuables worth more than 10,000 kroner – about $1,453 – from asylum-seekers to help cover their housing and food costs while their cases are being approved.

It follows similar moves by politicians in Switzerland and southern Germany, meaning police will have licence to search asylum-seekers on arrival in the country with the power to confiscate any non-essential items worth more than 10,000 Danish kroner (around £1,000) so long as they have no sentimental value.

The Danish Parliament was set to pass measures yesterday to deter refugees from seeking asylum, including confiscating valuables to pay for their stay, despite protests from global human rights organisations.

But opponents compare the law to the Nazi practice of taking valuables from Jews – and the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees warned that the proposals violate a number of treaties on refugees’ and children’s welfare.

The bill was passed as the minority government of right-leaning Liberals had secured backing from others, including the main opposition Social Democrats and the anti-immigrant Danish People’s Party.

But Danish Foreign Minister Kristian Jensen and Immigration Minister Inger Stojberg argued on Monday during a debate at the European Parliament that the proposed law is fair, in line with the Danish welfare model and compatible with global rules.

Yet ruling right-wing party Venstre and anti-immigration coalition partners the Danish People’s Party (DPP) have said claims the measure is a violation of global commitments and human rights shows the law has been “grossly misunderstood”.

If passed on Tuesday, the bill will take effect in February.

Zachary Whyte, an asylum and intergration researcher at the University of Copenhagen, said the bill did not make asylum seekers equal to native Danes – and other parts of the reforms were even more worrying than the plans to seize cash and items.

A spokesman for United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon criticized the decision, saying refugees deserved compassion.

Reuters reported that after a three-hour-long debate, lawmakers voted 81-27 for the bill.

But, not everyone agrees with this logic, and the newly enacted law generated widespread condemnation, as it seemingly condones the robbery of some of the world’s most vulnerable people.

In addition, the requirements for permanent residency applications now include new Danish language requirements and the person must have been employed for 2.5 of the past three years rather than three out of five years.

Denmark is not the only country targeting refugee possessions.

But Denmark isn’t alone in legally seizing assets from refugees.

Sweden, which took in over 160,000 refugees last year, the most per capita in Europe, introduced checks on its border to Denmark at the start of the year.