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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 Development Source
Cyprus Flag Cyprus 2019 Policy Return of former applicants Return of former applicants The AMIF project established the national forced return monitoring system, conducted by the Commissioner for Administration and Protection of Human Rights Ombudsman. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection The AMIF-funded project Psychosocial services and support for international protection applicants was signed with the Croatian Red Cross. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Policy Content of protection Content of protection Beneficiaries of international protection were granted 280 hours of state-provided language courses. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Legislative Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The new Foster Care Act entered into force, whereby unaccompanied minors can stay with a foster family. HR LEG 01 2019
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Institutional Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups A Governmental Inter-Agency Committee for the Protection of Unaccompanied Children was established. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Policy Access to procedure icon Access to procedure The project “Monitoring the conduct of the Ministry of the Interior police officers in the area of irregular migration and asylum” was launched to monitor that the rights of irregular migrants and potential applicants for international protection were consistently protected. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Policy Content of protection Content of protection Coordinators were appointed to social welfare centres and branch offices to provide support in accessing social welfare and, more broadly, in fostering inclusion in the local community. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Policy Legal representation and assistance Legal assistance and representation The AMIF project, “Providing legal advice in the process of granting international protection”, was implemented as of 1 April 2019. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Legislative Resettlement Resettlement and humanitarian admissions A new decision was issued on the resettlement of third country nationals and stateless persons. HR LEG 02 2019
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Institutional Processing asylum applications at first instance Processing asylum applications at first instance The Croatian Ministry of the Interior formed the Directorate for Immigration, Citizenship and Administrative Affairs, including the Sector for Foreigners and International Protection, which is divided into a Service for Foreigners, a Service for International protection (responsible for the International Protection Section, Dublin Procedure Section and the Integration Section) and a Service for the Reception and Accommodation of Applicants for International Protection (responsible for reception centres in Zagreb and Kutina). EASO Asylum Report 2020
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Policy Access to information Access to information The Office for Human Rights and Rights of National Minorities updated its “Guide for Integration – Basic Information for the Integration of Foreigners into Croatian Society”. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Croatia Flag Croatia 2019 Legislative Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection An amendment of an ordinance clarified the rules on the absence of an applicant from the reception facility. HR LEG 03 2019
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
Bulgaria Flag Bulgaria 2019 Legislative Statelessness in the context of asylum Statelessness in the context of asylum An amendment to the Law on Foreigners stated that stateless persons who do not meet the requirements for permanent or long-term residence may obtain permission for a one-year prolonged stay. BG LEG 01 2019
Bulgaria Flag Bulgaria 2019 Legislative Access to information Access to information An amendment to the Law on Asylum and Refugees clarified the role of organisations which provide legal and social assistance. BG LEG 01 2019
Bulgaria Flag Bulgaria 2019 Policy The Dublin procedure The Dublin procedure A new software was piloted to store files of applicants who are subject to incoming Dublin requests from other states. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Bulgaria Flag Bulgaria 2019 Legislative Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection For the purposes of family reunification of beneficiaries of international protection, it is clearly stated now that family ties must precede the foreigner's entry into the country. BG LEG 01 2019
Bulgaria Flag Bulgaria 2019 Institutional Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection A separate Social Adaptation Department was established in the Registration and Reception Centre in Harmanli. 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
Belgium Flag Belgium 2019 Policy Access to procedure icon Access to procedure The CGRS in Belgium continued to give refugee status to minor girls with a well-founded fear of persecution due to female genital mutilation, but parents were no longer granted derived refugee status automatically and needed to submit a separate request for regularisation. 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
Belgium Flag Belgium 2019 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection Persons already benefitting from international protection in another EU Member State no longer receive material reception conditions. Dublin applicants who absconded and re-applied for reception after six months were also no longer entitled to material reception conditions. Fedasil evaluates these rejections on a case-by-case basis, taking into account any specific vulnerabilities of the applicant. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Belgium Flag Belgium 2019 Policy Access to information Access to information Fedasil launched a multi-lingual information platform for applicants for international protection, www.fedasilinfo.be, accessible only from Belgium and available in 12 languages. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Belgium Flag Belgium 2019 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection Fedasil and the Red Cross established an agreement with the Flemish Integration and Civic Integration Agency to notify the public of the opening of any new reception centre and the agency would appoint a liaison officer to support the local administration in addressing residents. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Belgium Flag Belgium 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups All new protection officers at the CGRS were trained on gender in the asylum procedure and a specialised training course was provided for more experienced protection officers and supervisors on cases involving gender-related grounds. EASO Asylum Report 2020