Over the last few years, acts of violence giving rise to death, injury and a climate of fear have forced many Roma to leave their countries, in particular the Czech Republic and Hungary, in order to apply for asylum in other countries, some of which are member states of the European Union (EU).2 In Italy Roma have seen their settlements being fire-bombed. EU legislation provides that it is safe to return asylum seekers to EU member states. They are considered “safe countries of origin”. A citizen of one EU member state may thus not be granted refugee protection in another EU member state, save in exceptional cases. Since the requirements for long term residence in another EU member are often so stringent that many Roma asylum seekers are unable to fulfill them, they find themselves in a state of limbo and in an irregular situation.