Asylum Processes

In 2026, The Pact on Asylum and Migration will remain central to the planning of activities.

Thematic network meetings

At least five thematic network meetings will be organised throughout 2026 to support the implementation of the Pact. The meetings will be focussing on various topics, including in relation to the consultation of the relevant practical guides that are under development or being updated. In addition, the biennial thematic meeting on quality management will be held in 2026, which will focus on the complexity of procedures.

Practical guides and tools

With the entry into force of the Pact on Migration and Asylum, the EUAA practical guides and tools are further developed or adapted to the new legislation to ensure that all new key elements of the asylum procedure are covered. This considers the following practical guides and tools:

Toolkit for access to procedure - update

• Practical Guide on the Asylum Border Procedure 
• Practical guide on subsequent applications (update)
• Practical guide on qualification for international protection (update)
• Practical Guide on the accelerated examination procedure
• Practical guide on information provision in the asylum procedure (update)
• Practical guide on the implementation of the cessation clauses (update)

Towards the second half of the year, we will initiate the update of the rest of the practical guides:

• Evidence and Risk Assessment
• Interviewing applicants with religion-based claims
• Political Opinion
• Internal Protection Alternative
• Interpretation in the Asylum Procedure
• Personal Interview
• The use of COI by the case officers

In addition to the developments related to the Pact, we continued with the development of projects already initiated in the past years.

• The Self assessment tool for quality in the asylum procedure 
• A glossary of religion-related terms

Exchange Programme

Three exchange visits will be organised in the second half of the year and until February 2027. 
 

The EUAA practical guides and tools developed by the Asylum Processes Network aim to support asylum officers with their daily work, offering clear and high-quality guidance that reflects common European standards. The practical guides and tools are developed through a working group of Member State experts and are consulted with the European Commission, UNHCR, civil society organisations, other relevant international organisations, academia as well as the EUAA Asylum Processes Network before they are adopted by the Management Board of EUAA.

The EUAA organises meetings to exchange perspectives, discuss challenges and formulate common solutions. In addition to the annual meetings of the Asylum Processes Network, thematic meetings are organised on a variety of topics. These include registration and lodging procedures; personal interview; and the examination of an application for international protection as well as efficiency in the asylum procedure; special procedures; litigation processes; and backlog management strategies, etc.

The Asylum Processes Network exchange programme aims to facilitate the exchange of knowledge, experience, and best practices between EU+ country national asylum administrations. It provides the participants with a better understanding of projects, practices and initiatives and allows interaction with key stakeholders. The main objectives include:

• Foster the mutual learning process between the EU+ countries participating in the programme through explanation of the context, site visits, peer-to-peer discussions, interviews with local stakeholders, joint workshops, job shadowing, etc.;
• Focus on practical cooperation activities and peer-to-peer collaboration so that participants can obtain a real time experience of the implementation of asylum processes;
• Openly discuss the advantages and limitations of different processes;
• The visiting countries and the host country will both benefit from exchanging experience, identifying best practices, and providing structured feedback.  

The Network will meet in June to discuss about exclusion for serious (non-political) crimes and in November for the annual NCP meeting to take stock of the relevant developments during the year and discuss, amongst others, on possible priorities for next year. 

The updates of the EUAA Practical Guides on Exclusion and Exclusion for Serious (Non-Political) Crimes are ongoing in the framework of EUAA’s Pact Programme and are due for completion by the end of the year. 

Apart from this, the network is looking into new avenues for swifter practical cooperation on topics of particular interest for its members.

• Practical Guide on Exclusion for Serious (Non-Political) Crimes
• Practical Guide: Exclusion

National contact points engage in information sharing, consultation and exchange of knowledge and good practices on exclusion from international protection and security matters in asylum, including on matters of withdrawal of such protection.

No information on individual cases or personal data of third-country nationals or stateless persons is exchanged. The EUAA coordinates the activities of the network, including the organisation of meetings and facilitates all direct communication between its members. 

The network meets annually to discuss developments during the year and the priorities for the following year. In addition, thematic meetings are organised to address specific needs and challenges concerning, for instance, the detection of potential exclusion cases, the cooperation with relevant actors, evidence particular to exclusion cases, procedural and legal issues, etc.
 

One of the main EUAA processes to support Member States in improving the quality of their asylum systems is the EUAA quality matrix process.

The EUAA quality matrix process aims to comprehensively map Member State practices, to analyse Member State support needs and to provide solutions through the following activities:

• Thematic mapping. EU and associated countries respond to a questionnaire relating to a key element of asylum.
• Thematic meeting. The key findings from the thematic mapping are presented to the EU and associated countries.
• Thematic report. Following the thematic meeting, a thematic report is drafted. After consultation with the EU and associated countries the report is published and used internally.
• Practical tools. The EUAA develops practical tools based on the information collected in the particular phase of Quality Matrix process and on Member States' expertise.

The EUAA has produced numerous quality matrix reports covering all core aspects of the asylum procedure, reception and Dublin. This includes access to procedure, personal interview, evidence assessment, eligibility, exclusion, special procedures, appeals procedure, withdrawal of international protection, content of international protection, etc. Certain quality matrix reports on the core asylum aspects are now being updated.   

Quality matrix reports are intended for internal use by the asylum administrations in EU and associated countries. They are therefore only available to the members of the Asylum Processes Network, accessible through the restricted area.

Over the years, quality matrix meetings were organised focusing on various topics, including content of protection, withdrawal of international protection, reception conditions, appeals procedure, Dublin procedure, special procedures, identification of persons with special needs, access to procedure, exclusion, quality and eligibility, quality and evidence assessment, quality and personal interview.

• Operational standards and indicators

  One of the core tools that quality management systems make use of in order to plan, assess, monitor and improve the asylum processes in place are standards and indicators. Operational standards and indicators support the EU and associated countries in the practical implementation of key provisions of the asylum procedures directive to achieve fair and effective asylum procedures and to strengthen the Common European Asylum System.

  • Guidance on Asylum Procedure: Operational standards and indicators

• Quality Assurance Tool

  The objective of the quality assurance tool is to provide the EU and associated countries with a common framework to systematically assess the quality of asylum interviews and decisions based on common EU standards. The tool can be used for performance assessment, periodic quality review and audits. It can be used to assess the level of quality on an individual level as well as on a process level. The tool also forms a means to detect specific needs and plan relevant follow up measures.

  • Quality Assurance Tool

The EUAA organises regular meetings dedicated to the topic of quality management in asylum procedures. The quality management meetings aim to facilitate practical cooperation, mutual learning, and exchange of information on mechanisms, practices, and initiatives regarding the implementation, monitoring and follow up of asylum procedures.

The EUAA aims to support the assurance of quality during the implementation of the EUAA operational activities in the field, in order to promote the CEAS and common standards in the field. Furthermore, the EUAA aims at capacity building for national quality assurance systems and establishes lifecycle support depending on the situation in the field and the Member State’s needs.

This is achieved through a toolbox of measures:

• Promotion of the ‘four eye principle’ through the team leader model/concept;
• Application of the quality assurance tool (QAT);
• Promotion of a consultation culture on quality through dedicated meetings and platforms that engage both the EUAA and the host authorities;
• Support in development of standard operating procedures, templates, guidance, and tools;
• Provision of advice and expertise;
• Support in quality review exercises on interviews and recommendation reports issued in the field.
• Delivery of workshops on EUAA practical guidance and tools. This catalogue presents the current workshops that are delivered to the EUAA Asylum Support Teams and staff of asylum administrations.