The number of asylum requests from American nationals so far this year has superseded last year’s total, Dutch immigration service IND has confirmed to the AD.

According to several LGBTQI organisations, “dozens” of members of the community have already made the move to the Netherlands to escape president Donald Trump’s repressive measures against the group.

These include an executive order proclaiming the government will only recognise two biological sexes, male and female. Trump has also banned rainbow flags from government buildings and scrapped the budget for transgender care. The terms “gender identity”, non-binary” and transsexual” have also been banned.

“Our association alone has recently received over 50 requests from people in the LGBTQI community,” Sandro Kortekaas, chairman of LGBT Asylum Support told the paper.

An added problem is that passports can now only carry a person’s birth sex, which may make it difficult for transgender people to leave the country.

“Our people are genuinely afraid of persecution,” immigration specialist Wesley de Robles of the Immigration Netherlands Services said. His organisation helps American entrepreneurs who set up shop in the Netherlands to get a residency permit via the Dutch-American Friendship Treaty (DAFT).

“Since Trump, we are getting some 30 requests every month, over half of which are from the LGBTQI community. Before Trump’s second term that was just a few, ” De Robles said.

Dutch News is also aware of an increase in American nationals thinking of moving to the Netherlands and lawyers and community groups have also noted an increase in inquiries.

Asylum requests that come in via the IND are rising too, with 20 since the beginning of this year compared to between nine and 20 in the whole of 2024. According to Transgender Network, half of the requests are from transgender people. That number could rise to over 100 this year, the organisation said.

Dutch minister

Asylum minister Marjolein Faber of anti-immigration party PVV said in answer to a letter from LGBT Asylum Support that “Trump’s policy does not mean transgender people should fear persecution” and that immigration conditions will not change.

 “But we frequently hear that transgender people in the United States face intimidation and violence in the streets. In many places, simply using a public toilet is considered a crime,” Anne Ogborn of Trans Rescue said.

The Netherlands must prepare for an influx of immigrants from the United States, she said. “A storm is brewing. Transgender Americans will come here, because of the Dutch reputation for tolerance and for being at the forefront of gay rights,” she said.

That reputation is being tarnished, however, with 10% of LGBTQI community members having experienced violence in 2023, figures from statistics agency CBS have shown.

“We are falling in the international rankings, something that shouldn’t be ignored now that the Netherlands is becoming a refuge for many,” Transgender Network warned.