In Denmark there is a scheme that financially assists foreign nationals to voluntarily repatriate to their homelands.
And in 2020, Syrians led the way in those statistics, with 137 returning to their homelands – up from 100 the year before.
“More Syrians are travelling home with a bag of money from the Danish state. That’s good news as it shows that our steadfast repatriation policy works,” said the immigration minister, Mattias Tesfaye.
“From the start we’ve been upfront about a stay in Denmark being temporary.”
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In total, 349 people received financial support to voluntarily return home last year – down from 502 in 2019.
The decline is likely considerably influenced by limited travel options brought on by the global COVID-19 pandemic.
Second on the repatriation list in 2020 were Turks (55), followed by Bosnia-Herzegovinians (31), Thais (26) and Serbians (22).
The government is planning to propose a new law that will improve the repatriation scheme – including having dedicated conversations with foreigners who have been long-term unemployed.
“We need even more to travel home in the future. We are also preparing Denmark’s first ‘travel home law’, which will strengthen the ability to send home foreigners who are in the country illegally,” said Tesfaye.
