The psychosocial toll of Dublin III on asylum seekers in the Netherlands

The Dublin III Regulation determines which EU Member State is responsible for examining asylum claims, but its implementation carries significant consequences for those subjected to it. This study examines how Dublin III, as implemented in the Netherlands, affects asylum seekers' psychosocial wellbeing using Silove′s Adaptation and Development after Persecution and Trauma (ADAPT) model. Based on multi-method qualitative fieldwork, including interviews (n = 6), a focus group discussion (n = 11), expert interviews (n = 10), and participant observation between 2023 and 2025, this research traces how the procedure undermines safety, justice, social bonds, identity, and meaning. Participants described the period of waiting for deportation as the most distressing part of their migration journey. Rather than offering protection, the system perpetuates instability and compounds prior trauma. By situating these disruptions within broader legal and structural dynamics, the study frames Dublin III not only as procedurally flawed but as a system that undermines posttrauma recovery and human rights, with implications for migrant justice and transformative policy reform.