Immigration minister Gerd Leers used his discretionary powers to grant refugees official status 41 times, NOS revealed on Tuesday.

Exceptions can be made if an asylum seeker has been in the Netherlands for many years, because of sick children or where the situation in the country of origin is dangerous.
The information received from the immigration ministry does not always say why an asylum seeker has been allowed to stay for privacy reasons, says the NOS. It does, however, show that two suspected war criminals from Afghanistan were given official status because of their sick children.
In a reaction, Leers said his policy is ‘tough but fair’ and he uses his discretionary powers in a consistent way.