Ministerie van Justitie, Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst

On Tuesday 2 December 2008, the Administrative Jurisdiction Division of the Council of State concluded that current regulations provide sufficient basis for the civic integration requirement in provisional residence permit procedures (opinion case number 200806120/1).

This means that current policy will remain unchanged and that the requirement of passing the civic integration examination abroad for family reunification purposes remains in force.

The Council of State gave its opinion during appeal proceedings after the Amsterdam District Court had determined in July that a Moroccan woman, who wished to live with her husband in the Netherlands, was not required to pass the civic integration examination abroad in her country of origin before coming to the Netherlands. The court held that there was no basis for this requirement in the Aliens Act 2000. The Minister of Foreign Affairs filed an appeal against the District Court’s decision. The appeal was upheld in a decision of 2 December 2008.