Addressing statelessness in Europe’s refugee response In many cases the impact of statelessness on their journey to and through Europe was expressed by interviewees as a continuation of the exclusion and denial of rights experienced in their countries of origin. Most did not articulate any specific impact on their journey linked to their statelessness, though the majority had travelled irregularly, without any documentation. Most said they had not encountered any authorities (until reaching Turkey in the case of those who took this route to Greece or Serbia) nor sought support from services or NGOs. In no instance had their statelessness been identified by any authority prior to arriving in Europe. Some reported push-backs on route between Turkey and Greece but perceived their treatment by the police to be the same as other refugees. Where their journeys may have differed from others was in their length. For example, the Rohingya interviewee in Greece had an incredibly long journey of some four to five years, spent evading state authorities due to his lack of documentation and legal status, and trying to survive from informal work. The impact of statelessness on settlement in Europe was discussed by refugees interviewed in the Netherlands. Here interviewees perceived key differences between the treatment of stateless people with and without a residence permit. Interviews did not explore in detail how statelessness may affect the decision to grant residence, but one interviewee who was refused asylum noted the Dutch Government’s failure to understand statelessness as grounds for asylum where he felt this was a key factor in his fear of persecution. For those without a residence permit, life was perceived to be comparable to that of any other person refused asylum in the Netherlands without access to healthcare, work, study, or social security. One interviewee spoke of the profound impact of ‘uncertainty’ about his status and future on his mental health, which mirrored the uncertainty he had faced as a stateless person his whole life. Treatment in Europe was articulated as a continuation of the exclusion and denial of rights perpetrated by the State of origin. Another interviewee granted refugee protection in the Netherlands did not perceive her statelessness to have a significant impact on her life. Despite the initial challenges in registering her status and obtaining documents, she felt she had the same rights and duties as any other person in the Netherlands and looked forward to obtaining Dutch citizenship through facilitated naturalisation as a recognised stateless person. Relationships with other stakeholders National and regional authorities Due to the very nature of statelessness, the relationships stateless people have with authorities are often characterised by mistrust, fear and even violence. Experience from countries of origin is likely to impact on how stateless refugees perceive and interact with authorities in Europe. Interviewees in all research sites articulated challenges in these interactions. Some conveyed a lack of trust, but most common of all was the feeling that authorities did not - or were not willing to - understand their statelessness. In Greece, there was a high level of distrust of the regional authorities encountered there, and a feeling that agencies were ‘not on their side’. Information from registration officers, camp officials, and the police was not necessarily trusted, particularly since a new procedure was introduced allowing people to be taken into custody to confirm their identity: ‘I didn’t speak to anyone apart from my friends who I can really trust. I didn’t want to explain my situation to anyone because they will be angry at me and say I am a terrorist.’ (Syrian Kurd interviewed in Greece) 8