Refugees to cost Dutch 1.5 bln euros in 2016: FM

Refugees are expected to cost the Netherlands 1.5 billion euros (1.633 billion U.S. dollars) in 2016, the Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem told media on Wednesday.

The amount is roughly the same as what was spent last year when some 50,000 to 60,000 refugees arrived. The Dutch government had to raise its budget for the reception of asylum seekers twice up to 1.1 billion euros.

For 2016, the Dutch government bases its calculations on a number of 58,000 incoming refugees, taking into account government and EU measures to reduce the number of refugees. Dijsselbloem did not elaborate on the maximum amount of asylum seekers the Netherlands can handle.

However, Dutch media reported earlier that the Central Agency for the Reception of Asylum Seekers, the Ministry of Safety and Justice, and local councils are making plans based on a number of around 93,000 asylum seekers this year, which is well above the official government figure.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said in a reaction that the figures are different because implementing organizations should always consider "worst-case scenarios."

In 2014, nearly 24,000 requests for asylum were submitted in the Netherlands, an increase by 66 percent relative to 2013 and the highest number since 2002, according to Statistics Netherlands. Enditem