Asylum seekers whose applications are rejected and who appeal have to wait years for a response from the Swedish Migration Agency. Those who do not have a passport from their home country are not allowed to work during this time and are forced to live on the allowance they receive from the Swedish Migration Agency.
– The money from the Swedish Migration Agency is not enough for one month’s expenses. Sometimes I borrow from friends, and when they can’t help, I stay at home with nothing, says “Ahmed”, whose real name is something else.
According to Swedish Radio almost 7,800 people have at some point had a residence permit through the Upper Secondary School Act. Almost 70 percent of them have received permanent residence permits, according to the Swedish Migration Agency.
Ahmed says that he receives between SEK 1,800 and 1,900 a month from the Swedish Migration Agency and has no other help with accommodation, food or clothing. He now lives with a friend but says the situation has become a great mental strain.
Trained chef
In 2020, Ahmed completed a cooking course and tried to find work, but due to the corona pandemic, he was unsuccessful. The Swedish Migration Agency rejected his asylum application. He applied again and has since lived without an answer.
– Returning to Afghanistan is like suicide. I came to Sweden as a child and have adapted to Swedish life. I cannot live under the Taliban’s dictatorship, says Ahmed.
He says that he has lived in the Migration Agency’s accommodation for several years but has had terrible experiences there and does not want to return. He prefers to temporarily stay with friends.
He is keen to study and work in Sweden, dreams of starting a restaurant and publishing his memoirs.