Residence permit for children in distressing circumstances

The party programme wants to implement the Children's Convention and the principle of the best interests of the child in every case, and requires an asylum policy based on the spirit of the conventions with dignified and legally secure examinations. The counter-proposal's requirement for lower thresholds for residence permits on humanitarian grounds for children follows directly from that commitment. The election manifesto moreover establishes that the right to asylum must never be compromised.

• Children's Convention is implementeddecisive»Utvecklingen mot starkare rättigheter för barn är en av de progressiva« (party programme ↗)“The development toward stronger rights for children is one of the progressive”
• asylum policy according to the conventions»Vi vill se en asylpolitik grundad i respekt för« (party programme ↗)“We want to see an asylum policy based on respect for”
• asylum rights inviolable»Rätten att söka asyl kan aldrig tummas på, vi kräver att endast permanenta uppehållstillstånd ska utfärdas vid beviljad asyl.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The right to seek asylum can never be compromised, we require that only permanent residence permits shall be issued upon granted asylum.”
• best interests of the child»barn ska växa upp med det stöd som behövs för att klara skolan och« (party programme ↗)“children should grow up with the support needed to manage school and”

The party programme binds policy to the Convention on the Rights of the Child and to Sweden offering a safe haven to people forced to flee, within the framework of generous and regulated immigration. Lower requirements for residence permits on humanitarian grounds for children than for adults follow from the child perspective in the plan. At the same time, the election manifesto says that the tightened migration line is firm, which pulls in the opposite direction and makes the assessment uncertain.

• the convention as basisdecisive»Alla barn ska ha rätt till en trygg uppväxt i enlighet med FN:s barnkonvention« (party programme ↗)“All children shall have the right to a safe upbringing in accordance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child”
• safe haven»Sverige ska erbjuda en trygg fristad åt människor som tvingas fly från förföljelse och våld« (party programme ↗)“Sweden shall offer a safe haven to people forced to flee from persecution and violence”
• tightened migration policy»Vi har stramat åt migrationspolitiken, och denna linje ligger fast« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We have tightened migration policy, and this line is firm”
• generous and regulated immigration»Vi vill ha en generös och reglerad invandring« (party programme ↗)“We want generous and regulated immigration”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The election manifesto states that the child perspective shall permeate the migration laws and that children fleeing shall receive permanent residence. The party programme wants to make the Convention on the Rights of the Child Swedish law and let kinship and health weigh more heavily in the assessment of residence. Lower requirements for children in particularly difficult circumstances follows directly from this and goes against the committee's restrictive line.

• child perspective in migration lawsdecisive»Barnperspektivet ska genomsyra migrationslagarna« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The child perspective shall permeate the migration laws”
• the Convention on the Rights of the Child as law»barnkonvention ska bli svensk lag och politiska« (party programme ↗)“child convention shall become Swedish law and political”
• kinship and health shall weigh more heavily»ska anknytning och hälsa väga tyngre än det gör i« (party programme ↗)“kinship and health shall weigh more heavily than they do in”
• residence for children»att barn på flykt ska få permanent uppehållstillstånd.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“that children fleeing shall receive permanent residence.”

The plan establishes that children's rights and perspectives are of the greatest importance and that the party stands for a generous and humane refugee and immigration policy where the right to seek asylum is a human right. That the requirements for residence permit on humanitarian grounds again become lower for children than for adults thus follows. The plan therefore supports the demand.

• children's rightsdecisive»Samhällets aktörer ska inta individens perspektiv. Av största betydelse är då barnens rättigheter och perspektiv.« (party programme ↗)“Society's actors should take the individual's perspective. Of greatest importance are then the rights and perspectives of children.”
• generous and humane policy»Centerpartiet strävar efter öppna gränser, fri rörlighet samt en generös och human flykting- och invandringspolitik.« (party programme ↗)“The Centre Party strives for open borders, free movement and a generous and humane refugee and immigration policy.”
• right to asylum»Att få söka sig en fristad och en försörjning, inte bara inom det land där man är född, utan också utanför landets gränser, är en mänsklig rättighet.« (party programme ↗)“To seek asylum and income, not just within the country where one is born, but also outside the country's borders, is a human right.”
• every child's right»Särskilt viktigt är att värna varje barns rätt att bli respekterad och att bli sedd för den man är.« (party programme ↗)“Especially important is to protect every child's right to be respected and to be seen for who they are.”

The party programme requires that particular attention be paid to children's own asylum grounds and that unaccompanied children be especially protected, within the framework of a human migration policy where those who flee war and persecution shall receive protection. A lower requirement for children in compassionate circumstances aligns with this. The election manifesto's demand for legislation in line with other EU countries pulls in the opposite direction, so certainty is low.

• children especially protecteddecisive»hänsyn ska tas till barns egna asylskäl, och ensamkommande barn ska särskilt värnas« (party programme ↗)“attention shall be paid to children's own asylum grounds, and unaccompanied children shall be especially protected”
• human migration policy»En human och långsiktigt hållbar migrationspolitik.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“A human and long-term sustainable migration policy.”
• asylum as human right»Asylrätten är en grundläggande mänsklig rättighet.« (party programme ↗)“The right to asylum is a fundamental human right.”
• legislation in line with the EU»Ska integrationen lyckas måste Sverige få en migrationspolitik med en lagstiftning i linje med andra EU-länder.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“For integration to succeed Sweden must have a migration policy with legislation in line with other EU countries.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The election manifesto, which carries the most weight, runs on a strict immigration policy and states that strict migration policy is required; lowering the requirements for residence permits on humanitarian grounds goes in the opposite direction. The party programme does admittedly give a conflicting commitment that humanitarian grounds shall weigh heavily and that the child and family perspective shall always be considered. Given this difference, the election manifesto's line carries more weight, so the plan rejects the counter-proposal's demands.

• strict migration policydecisive»Stram migrationspolitik krävs för att ta itu med integrationsproblem och utanförskap.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Strict migration policy is required to address integration problems and exclusion.”
• strict migration as an election promise»EN STRAM MIGRATION« (2022 manifesto ↗)“A STRICT MIGRATION”
• humanitarian grounds weigh heavily»skyddsbehov och där humanitära skäl väger tungt.« (party programme ↗)“protection needs and where humanitarian grounds weigh heavily.”
• child and family perspective»Migrationspolitiken får inte leda till att familjemedlemmar skiljs från varandra.« (party programme ↗)“Migration policy must not lead to family members being separated from each other.”

The plan commits to adapting the asylum legislation to the legal minimum level according to EU law and to reducing the number of asylum seekers significantly, with a volume target at Nordic levels. The counter-proposal demands a return to lower requirements for residence permits on humanitarian grounds for children, which expands the protection grounds beyond the minimum level and increases the number of granted permits. It conflicts with the plan's stated line that integration capacity shall guide the level of immigration.

• EU legal minimum leveldecisive»Anpassa asyllagstiftningen efter den rättsliga miniminivån enligt EU-rätten« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Adapt asylum legislation to the legal minimum level according to EU law”
• fewer asylum seekers»Antalet asylsökande till Sverige behöver minska betydligt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The number of asylum seekers to Sweden needs to decrease significantly.”
• integration capacity guides»Vår integrationsförmåga ska vara styrande för nivån på invandringen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Our integration capacity shall be governing for the level of immigration.”
• volume target for asylum reception»Införa ett volymmål för asylmottagandet på nordiska nivåer« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Introduce a volume target for asylum reception at Nordic levels”

The plan requires the strictest possible immigration legislation within the framework of EU law and that Swedish legislation be kept more restrictive than comparable countries'. To again lower the requirements for residence permits on humanitarian grounds for children goes directly against this and would increase the number of granted permits. The counter-proposal's requirements are therefore rejected.

• strictest possible immigration lawdecisive»Utifrån dessa principer vill Sverigedemokraterna utforma den striktast möjliga utlänningslagstiftningen som är möjlig inom ramen för de europeiska asylreglerna.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Based on these principles, Sweden Democrats want to formulate the strictest possible immigration legislation that is possible within the framework of European asylum rules.”
• more restrictive than other countries»Svensk lagstiftning måste därför hållas mer restriktiv än jämförbara länder.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Swedish legislation must therefore be kept more restrictive than comparable countries.”
• tightened rules»Skärpa reglerna i utlänningslagen till striktas möjliga nivå enligt EU-rätten« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Tighten the rules in the immigration law to the strictest possible level according to EU law”
• asylum reception near zero»Det direkta asylmottagandet från länder som inte utgör vårt närområde ska minskas till nära noll.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Direct asylum reception from countries that are not part of our neighbourhood should be reduced to near zero.”