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EMN ARCHIVE 2008

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1. On October 9th, 2008 in Latvian contact point of European Migration Network (hereafter– Network) a work meeting with representatives of European Union Information Agency took place.

2. A new report on the structure of asylum and migration policy in Latvia is being developed now. This topic was chosen in order to make it easier for the new Contact Points of the European Migration Network (which accessed to the Network after the approval of the legal basis on 14.05.2008) to integrate in the tasks of the Network. The study will make it possible for all 26 European Union Member States (except Denmark) to gather the latest information on the institutions involved in asylum and migration sphere, relevant regulatory acts that regulate these spheres etc. Furthermore, the task of every Member State will be to update the study from time to time, in this way reporting on changes in the spheres of asylum and migration. It is planned to finish the study in mid-December 2008.

3. Currently, the Statistical Report on Asylum and Legal and Illegal Migration in Latvia in 2006 is in the last preparation phase. The Report is being made on the basis of the specifications and structure developed by the European Commission and accepted by the Contact Points of the European Migration Network . The main objective of the Report is to analyse the trends of asylum seeking and legal and illegal migration, in this way making a comparison and interpretation of facts on both European and global level. The Report will be available in electronic format in late October.

4. Policy Report about the migration and asylum situation in Latvia, reference year 2007. The aim of this report is to reflect the most important political and legislative changes in the migration and asylum field in Latvia in 2007. The report comprises two main tasks – to document in a comparative perspective the situation with the European legislation and the influence of European political events on Latvia as well as to describe the developments of national legislation and administrative practice and the political and public debates in the field of migration and asylum.

5. The Council of Europe adopted a decision in 14 May 2008Nr.2008/381/EC, establishing a European Migration Network (further - Network). The Network was launched as a pilot project already in 2003. The Council’s adopted decision finally gives Network a legal basis to its objectives, tasks and the established structure. In accordance with the Council’s decision the objective of the Network in the migration and asylum field is to meet the information needs of Community institutions and member state’s authorities providing up-to-date, objective, reliable and comparable information on migration and asylum, with a view to supporting policy-making in the European in these areas. The Network is composed of the European Commission and national contact points assigned by the member states.

6. European Migration Network published new works: synthesis report on Conditions of Entry and Residence of Third Country Highly-Skilled workers in the EU and synthesis report Return Migration. Electronic versions of these reports are available in the Research and Studies section. Synthesis reports generalize and compare in the European perspective results of eleven national contact points (Austria, Belgium, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Sweden, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom) researches on conditions of entry and residence of third country highly-skilled workers in the EU in the period between 2000 and 2006 and Return migration policy.

7. At the present moment report on the situation in the migration and asylum in Latvia in 2007 are prepared. Report will overlook the development and changes in the policy of migration and asylum in Latvia in 2007. This report’s aim is to reflect main changes in the policy of migration and asylum in Latvia. Report will include two main tasks – comparative perspective in documentation of European legislation condition and influence of European political events on Latvia, as well as description of national legislation development and administration practice, equally with political and public debates on migration and asylum. It is assumed that the report will be ready by the 30th of June this year.

8. Synthesis report „Family Reunification”overlooks inductions to the legislation on family reunification in member-countries in the period between 2002 and 2006, and researches its structure and scope. To achieve an objective the following tasks were proposed: policy of nine European Union member states (Austria, Estonia, Germany, Greece, Latvia, Romania, Sweden, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom) on family reunification were examined, considering also discussions on family reunification policy in the period between 2002 and 2006, with the analysis of quantitative information on family reunification, with the purpose to define the quantity, structure and influence on the society. The most important task of the work was clarification of how effective the policy of family reunification is.