Migration Law

6 ECTS credits
150 h study time

Offer 2 with catalog number 4015046EER for all students in the 1st semester at a (E) Master - advanced level.

Semester

1st semester

Enrollment based on exam contract

Possible

Grading method

Grading (scale from 0 to 20)

Can retake in second session

Yes

Taught in

Dutch

Partnership Agreement

Under interuniversity agreement for degree program

Faculty

Faculty of Law and Criminology

Department

Publiek recht

Educational team

Geert Debersaques (course titular)

Activities and contact hours

39 contact hours Lecture
120 contact hours Independent or External Form of Study

Course Content

Migration law is an important part of public law in Belgium. It regulates the access to the territory, stay, establishment and removal of foreigners on the one hand and the legal status of foreigners within the Kingdom on the other.

The course deals with the sources, the structure and the rules of migration law in federal Belgium (Belgian or national dimension), but with special attention for the European and international dimension of migration law, including the human rights that are very relevant to migration law contained in these sources (e.g. Art. 2-3 ECHR, 13 ECHR etc.).

It will be discussed:
In an introductory part, the concept of foreigner and its distinctions (citizen of the union, third-country national, applicant for international protection (asylum seeker, subsidiary protection, refugee), stateless person, alien in illegal residence, etc.) are analysed, as well as the institutional framework in the federal Belgium concerning migration matters. An overview is offered of the main international, European and national sources (ECHR, TFEU, charter, regulations, association agreement, bilateral agreements, constitution, aliens act, etc.) focused on, or seen from, migration law and legal practice:

the right of residence: entry (including visa obligation) and short stay, stay of more than 3 months, settlement, international protection and this from the various distinctions and sources: third-country nationals, citizens of the Union and their family members and foreigners, family members of a Belgian citizen, etc.
capita selecta or sub-themes on migration, such as:
- some aspects of crimmigration
- some aspects of nationality (acquisition and loss of nationality) and statelessness in relation to residence;
rather transversal the legal protection (remedies) specific to migration law (the Council for alien law litigation; other remedies (e.g. "raadkamer"), with emphasis on substantive jurisdiction and competence) and the interpretation of the legal concepts in administrative law (e.g. formal motivation, examination of the facts by the administrative judge, etc.).

The material is illustrated and treated as much as possible with examples from legal practice (as an aspect of "law in action"), drawing in particular on the holder's practical experience as a magistrate of the Council of State and/or from current events (interpretation of specific cases covered by the press).

Legislation, international, European and national case law are used and their use in the lectures is actively supported (e.g. "on the spot" online searches in databases etc.).

Course material

Digital course material (Required) : HOC + bijdragen uit rechtsleer en rechtspraak opgegeven door de docent tijdens HOC + uitgebreide ppt + lesopnames. Alles is beschikbaar onder modulevorm op canvas., docent, op canvas wordt pptx ter beschikking gesteld. Ppt mag enkel voor studiedoeleinden worden gebruikt

Additional info

The lectures take place in "hybrid" form: distance education (by means of recordings) and face-to-face (on campus) education with recordings.

If possible, a practical visit to the federal migration and asylum services (Immigration Department and Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons) and/or attending a hearing at the Council of State as a court of cassation and at the RVV as a court of fact will also take place. A guest lecturer will be foreseen to discuss the topic "the lawyer and the migrant" if possible.

Response and contact moments by students with the titular: questions about the study material can be asked before or after class (in case of physical HOC), or via the e-mail address of the titular at the VUB. Through the online learning platform, times will also be communicated whereby an online meeting tool made available by the VUB (e.g. Teams => will be determined via the online learning platform), questions can be put to the titular in a one-to-one online conversation (via chat or video) and will then be discussed. If necessary and upon request of working students, such a contact moment will be provided at more convenient (evening or weekend) hours.

Learning Outcomes

General competencies

The student has insight into and knowledge of national, European and international law concerning the legal position of foreign nationals and their legal protection vis-à-vis the government (foreign nationals in public law).
The student can independently analyse a practical example provided by the professional field (legal profession, NGO, civil servant, etc.) and design a solution - taking into account all aspects of the problem and the preconditions of the given practical context
The student is able to take a (scientifically and critically substantiated) position on a current theme in migration law on the basis of the knowledge and insights acquired.
The student is aware of the complexity of migration law and its embedding in international, European and national law and recognises the connections with international, European and (national) administrative law

Grading

The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Oral Exam determines 100% of the final mark.

Within the Oral Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:

Oral Exam with a relative weight of 1 which comprises 100% of the final mark.

Additional info regarding evaluation

100 % oral without written preparation. One of the examination questions is to solve a limited case in which various aspects of the regulations can be addressed (e.g. visa requirement? family reunification? competent court? etc.).

Active use of the bundle of the legal texts or the Code and jurisprudence at the exam is mandatory. To this end, the case law to be brought along is indicated in advance via canvas.

During the examination, the student may make use of:

All relevant legislation and case law (no pre-selection by the professor). The legislation may be annotated and contain cross-references (e.g. to other regulatory texts, to case law, etc.). The student MUST bring the designated case law to the examination, because an examination question may be asked about it. Not having the designated case law with them, will result in a 0 (zero) on that question. The use of the textbook, slides and own class notes are not allowed during the exam.
The medium on which this information is recorded (PC, tablet, USB stick, paper, etc.) is completely free. Since access to the Internet in the examination room cannot be guaranteed during the exam, online research during the exam is not guaranteed and is therefore not recommended. If the student opts for online research (e.g. in the cloud search) during the exam, this is done at his/her own personal risk.

Allowed unsatisfactory mark

The supplementary Teaching and Examination Regulations of your faculty stipulate whether an allowed unsatisfactory mark for this programme unit is permitted.

Academic context