Sharp decline in the number of asylum seekers in Ter Apel after the opening of a new shelter in Bedinghausen
The number of asylum seekers at the registration center in Ter Apel has decreased significantly after the opening of an emergency shelter in Bedinghausen. The number of residents there dropped over the weekend to 1,721 people, down from nearly 2,100 just a few days ago, marking the lowest figure recorded since the beginning of January.
This decrease is directly related to the establishment of a new temporary facility in the grounds of the Walibi amusement park in Biddinghuizen. The first arrivals began to arrive on Friday. The site consists of mobile housing units and construction trailers, providing space for about 1,250 people until the end of March. According to the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers (COA), most of the new residents were transferred from Ter Apel.
This is not the first time the Biddinghuizen site has been used as an emergency shelter; it is the fourth time these festival grounds have hosted asylum seekers. Initially, about 100 people arrived daily, but the number has now risen to around 200 people per day. The center will close in early April as preparations begin for major festivals like Lowlands and Defqon.1, which take place at the same site.
Earlier this month, additional temporary solutions were found, as seventy asylum seekers were transferred from Ter Apel to an abandoned church in Leiden that has been converted into a temporary shelter. These measures aim to alleviate the chronic overcrowding at the main registration center.
The Ter Apel center has long been suffering from exceeding its capacity. It is designed to accommodate a maximum of 2,000 people, but the numbers consistently exceed this limit. In a court ruling issued in 2024, the central office for receiving asylum seekers was ordered to pay a fine of 50,000 euros for each day the number of residents exceeds the permitted limit, and the total fines have now exceeded one million euros. Dutch regulatory authorities have repeatedly warned that overcrowding leads to unsafe and inhumane conditions for asylum seekers and staff, calling for urgent action to restore stability.