European Union law does not preclude, under certain conditions, beneficiaries of international protection from having to pass a civic integration examination, ruled the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in a judgment handed down on Tuesday 4 February (case C-158/23).
In the Netherlands, an Eritrean challenged the compatibility with Directive 2011/95, which sets out the conditions to be met in order to benefit from international protection, of the Dutch system which required him, once he reached the age of 18, to follow a civic integration examination and pass it within three years (extended by one year on the grounds that the refugee had stayed in a reception centre for asylum seekers and had followed a course).
Because the complainant did not attend certain courses and exams and did not pass those he did attend, the Dutch authorities fined him €500 and asked him to repay the €10,000 loan granted to finance the costs of the civic integration programme, on the grounds that he had failed to meet the deadlines for passing the programme.
In a reference for a preliminary ruling, the Court found that European legislation does not preclude, under certain conditions, national legislation which requires beneficiaries of international protection to pass a civic integration examination.
The CJEU stresses the importance of acquiring knowledge of the language and society of the host Member State in order to promote the integration of refugees into the society of their host country and their access to the labour market and vocational training.
The Member States have a margin of discretion in this context and must take account of the personal circumstances (age, level of education, financial situation, state of health) of the beneficiary of international protection, according to the Court of Justice. In addition, the knowledge required to pass an integration examination should be set at a basic level, without exceeding what is necessary to promote integration. And a refugee should be exempt from having to pass the examination if he or she can demonstrate that he or she is already effectively integrated in the host country.
In any event, the Court is of the opinion that failing a civic integration examination should not be systematically punished by a fine. Such a sanction should only be imposed in exceptional cases, such as a proven and persistent lack of willingness to integrate, and must not impose an unreasonable financial burden on the beneficiary concerned.
The Court concludes that the fine provided for by the Netherlands legislation, which is imposed systematically and can be as high as €1,250 appears to be disproportionate to the objective pursued. The same applies to making the beneficiary of international protection bear the full cost of the civic integration programme courses and exams.
To see the judgment of the Court of Justice: https://aeur.eu/f/fcq (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)