The government is making it harder for asylum seekers who commit crimes to obtain and keep a residency permit, junior justice minister Klaas Dijkhoff has told parliament in a briefing.

Currently refugees can lose their right to a residency permit if they are sentenced to at least 18 months in jail, but that is to be reduced to six months, the minister said.

This mean refugees who are involved in physical violence, bag snatching and small-scale drug dealing can be refused residency or lose their permit if they already have one, broadcaster Nos says.

There are no separate figures showing how many asylum seekers are jailed for committing crimes but ‘several hundred’ foreigners end up in court each year, Nos says. This figure includes asylum seekers, illegal immigrants and people who have had refugee status for some time.

However, the government will take the situation in their home country into account before deciding whether or not they should be expelled, Nos says.