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National Asylum Developments Database

 

The National Asylum Developments Database presents legislative, institutional and policy developments related to asylum since 2018.

Searches can be narrowed down by:

  • Country
  • Year
  • Type of development: legislative, institutional or policy 
  • Thematic area: access to procedure, access to information, legal assistance and representation, interpretation services, special procedures, procedures at first instance, reception of applicants for international protection, detention, procedures at second instance, country of origin information, statelessness in the asylum context, content of protection, return of former applicants, resettlement and humanitarian admission programmes.

Details on each development and further analysis can be consulted in the Asylum Report series.
 

Types of policies and practices reported in the National Asylum Developments Database

The National Asylum Developments Database can be searched by institutional, legislative and policy changes. There are three types of policy developments:

Policies and practices related to the integrity of national asylum systems aim to swiftly identify unfounded asylum applications and ensure that financial, human and administrative resources are not dissipated on such claims. These measures involve efforts to rapidly establish an applicant’s identity, including age, country of origin, travel route and security concerns if any. These facts help to better assess the credibility of the applicant’s statements and determine whether beneficiaries of international protection are still in need of protection. The prevention of unintentional misuse of the asylum procedure and its integrity are also supported by the provision of information to asylum applicants and beneficiaries of international protection on their respective rights and obligations and related procedural arrangements.

Policies and practices that improve the efficiency of national asylum systems include digitalisation and the use of new technologies in the framework of asylum, prioritising or fast-tracking applications, the re-organisation of the procedure itself or implementing changes in the number of staff employed.

Policy and practice aiming to enhance the quality of national asylum systems contribute to increasing fairness, integrity and efficiency. Quality assurance systems, guidance materials and capacity-building measures typically pay off on the initial investment and efforts. The initiatives include staff training, revising existing guidance materials and monitoring the quality of the decisions delivered.

The database presents validated factual information and does not imply any endorsement from the European Commission or EUAA.

Flag Country Year Type of development Thematic area Aufsteigend sortieren Development Source
Austria Flag Austria 2021 Policy Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The Austrian Federal Ministry of Justice established a Commission on the Best Interests of the Child in February 2021, tasked to review the legal framework and practices related to children in the asylum procedure. The Federal Ministry of the Interior conducted an internal review as well, concluding that many of the recommendations were already being applied or were on the way to implementation, and suggesting new measures. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Ireland Flag Ireland 2021 Policy Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The International Protection Accommodation Service (IPAS) piloted a vulnerability assessment process throughout 2021. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Italy Flag Italy 2021 Policy Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The Ministry of the Interior signed agreements with UNICEF to monitor reception conditions for unaccompanied children, with Terre des Hommes for psychological and psychosocial assistance from disembarkation to first reception, and with Save the Children for the provision of targeted support to unaccompanied children. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Greece Flag Greece 2020 Institutional Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The Special Secretariat for the protection of unaccompanied and separated minors was appointed as the competent authority for the protection of unaccompanied children. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Finland Flag Finland 2022 Legislative Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure Law No 1294/2022 was adopted to improve the identification and referral of victims of trafficking and their right to services and assistance, irrespective of the progress of criminal proceedings. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Norway Flag Norway 2020 Legislative Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure According to the amended Immigration Regulations, the UDI and UNE are given access to obtain necessary information from the child welfare service for the purpose of case processing. EASO Asylum Report 2021
France Flag France 2020 Legislative Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The Ministry of the Interior provided instructions to the prefectures on the early examination of residence permit requests of unaccompanied minors under the care of departmental child care services. The objective is to ensure that rights - in particular work permits related to vocational education programmes - do not immediately cease when the minor reaches adulthood. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Bulgaria Flag Bulgaria 2022 Policy Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure A coordination mechanism was approved to facilitate communication among the authorities and organisations working with unaccompanied and separated children. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Slovakia Flag Slovakia 2019 Legislative Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Amendments entered into force to replace the former facility for minors with centres for children and family. SK LEG 02 2019
Greece Flag Greece 2019 Legislative Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The Ministry of Labour, Social Security and Social Solidarity in Greece issued several ministerial decisions throughout the year related to the registry of professional guardianship, guardian selection criteria, training and the procedures for the assessment and determination of the best interests of the child. EL LEG 06 2019, EL LEG 07 2019, EL LEG 08 2019, EL LEG 09 2019
Sweden Flag Sweden 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The Swedish Migration Agency published new instructions on handling LGBTI cases and changed its system on assessing these cases. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Lithuania Flag Lithuania 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups A newly-built dormitory opened for a maximum of 15 vulnerable persons at the Foreigners’ Registration Centre of the State Border Guard Service. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Sweden Flag Sweden 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups In preparation for the entry into force of the UN CRC Act (2018:1197) on 1 January 2020, the Swedish Migration Agency developed guidelines on assessing the best interests of the child in accordance with Article 3 of the UN CRC, trained around 500 case officers and 40 head of units in children's rights, and developed a technical tool supporting the determination of the best interests of the child. It also developed new guidelines on the placement of unaccompanied minor applicants assigned to a municipality. Information on the asylum procedure was developed specially for children aged 7 to 12 years, available through a mobile application. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Belgium Flag Belgium 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The staff of two Fedasil reception centres underwent intensive training on restorative practices, developed by the Oranjehuis NGO, to prevent conflicts between unaccompanied minors and staff, provide sustainable measures for minors and reduce the need for disciplinary transfers. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Legislative Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Major changes were implemented for applicants in the Dublin procedure who claimed to be victims of human trafficking. This group of applicants will now only receive the special temporary residence permit for victims of human trafficking if their presence is considered to be essential for the investigation and prosecution of the case, and the Netherlands as a consequence only takes responsibility for their application if that is the case. NL LEG 05 2019
Latvia Flag Latvia 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups 80 State Border Guard officers participated in training on unaccompanied minors and other vulnerable persons applying or not applying for asylum (upgraded training programme), “Profiling, interviewing and identification”. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Belgium Flag Belgium 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The CGRS continued training protection officers and supervisors who were joining the minors team, and informative sessions were organised to all new protection officers. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Finland Flag Finland 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The AMIF-funded Competent Representative (Osaava edustaja) project was launched, developing online training for representatives of unaccompanied minors. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Belgium Flag Belgium 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The Guardianship Service continued with an AMIF-funded project to develop a methodology for monitoring guardians and the assessment of the best interests of minors and worked on improving communications with all stakeholders. EASO Asylum Report 2020
France Flag France 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups OFPRA offered extensive training for senior protection officers on sexual orientation and gender identity. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Malta Flag Malta 2019 Legislative Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The Head of the Agency for the Welfare of Asylum Seeker (AWAS) may be appointed as a legal guardian for unaccompanied minors with an interim care order, in order to prevent delays. MT LEG 01 2019
Hungary Flag Hungary 2019 Legislative Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Government Decree 277/2018 (XII. 21.) entered into force, modifying Government Decree 114/2007 (V. 24.), which clarified the types of administrative actions that the Aliens Police can carry out in the absence of a legal guardian when the applicant is an unaccompanied minor. HU LEG 01 2019
Sweden Flag Sweden 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The Swedish Migration Agency created an online training for its staff on gender-based violence within the asylum procedure. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Bulgaria Flag Bulgaria 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Weekly meetings were organised with unaccompanied minors who are subject to proceedings under the Dublin III Regulation. At these meetings, unaccompanied minors are regularly informed of the steps that have been taken regarding their Dublin procedure and of the expected outcome of this procedure. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Czech Flag Czech Republic 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The Department for Asylum and Migration Policy of the Ministry of Interior launched a pilot project using non-medical methods for age assessment. EASO Asylum Report 2020