An asylum applicant and the applicant’s employer applied for a work permit to allow the applicant to work beyond the 24 weeks per year provided in Dutch law. The Management Board of the Employee Insurance Agency (de Raad van bestuur van het Uitvoeringsinstituut Werknemersverzekeringen - UWV) rejected the application because the employee would then work more than the maximum permitted 24 weeks in a period of 52 weeks. After waiting the required period of time, the applicant was again in the same situation after working for the same employer for 24 weeks and repeated the request before the UWV, which rejected a new work permit. They appealed the decision before The Court of the Hague seated in Arnhem.

The UWV argued that an extension of national work provisions would give the impression to the persons concerned that they could receive permanent residence in the Netherlands and would also make the return of rejected asylum applicants more difficult. In addition, the UWV argued that the 24 weeks should be maintained as this ensures that no entitlement to unemployment benefits can arise. 

The court ruled that the applicant’s appeal was well-founded and did not follow the approach of the UWV. The court noted that working during the asylum procedure promotes integration in the Netherlands if the asylum application is then granted and considering that if an application is rejected, the person is no longer legally resident in the Netherlands, and so there is no question of obstructing the return of the rejected asylum applicant. The court further noted that the 24-week limit restricts effective access to the labour market and is in violation of Article 15(1) and (2) of the recast Reception Conditions Directive. Thus, the court ruled that the 24-week requirement is not binding.