Ministerie van Justitie, Immigratie- en Naturalisatiedienst

The IND has decided it will no longer honour requests for inspection of explanatory annexis with respect to decisions and documents containing a proposal to settle an individual case. This new course of action does not mean, however, that those directly involved will not be informed adequately. If so required, a concise copy of the document will be provided, to the extent there are no objections.

Reason for this change
It has become clear that requests for inspection are made in such large numbers that these have acquired a structural character. Moreover, explanatory annexis often seem to be interpreted incorrectly. The explanatory annexis indicate the grounds for an internal discussion of the case, but never provide a complete reflection of the discussion; they are only the reflection of a given moment in time. The final summary /summing up may contain an argument that was decisive in the ultimate decision, but this is certainly not always the case.
This applies even more so in those cases where no policy rules exist with respect to a particular action, such as the decision to make use of discretionary powers. Moreover, the person who draws up the explanatory annex or document should not feel hindered in his freedom to weigh arguments and motivations against each other, if such documents are subject to inspection.