Between January and the end of May, 28 US nationals applied for asylum in the Netherlands, the immigration service IND has confirmed to the Parool.

In an average year between nine and 18 Americans apply for asylum, the paper said.

The reasons for requesting asylum are unknown. “We only note the motive in personal dossiers,” an IND spokesman said. “A request is considered on the basis of the individual situation.”

Officially the US is considered a safe country.

However, the AD reported in April that, according to LGBTQ organisations, “dozens” of members of the community have already moved 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.

Sandro Kortekaas from LGBT Asylum Support told the Parool on Tuesday that he is aware of 15 LGBTQ people from the US who have requested asylum in the Netherlands.

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.