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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 Sort descending Source
Italy Flag Italy 2022 Legislative Detention Detention during the asylum procedure The new regulation for pre-removal detention centres (CPR) was published, followed by a circular from the Department of Civil Liberties and Immigration on its implementation. The circular regulates access to the centres, the services provided, communication, visits as well as monitoring and controls. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Belgium Flag Belgium 2020 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications The new Royal Decree establishing the list of safe countries of origin entered into force. The list itself includes the same countries. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Slovenia Flag Slovenia 2021 Legislative Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection The new sanction system for breaching house rules of the reception facility started to be applied. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Austria Flag Austria 2019 Institutional Processing asylum applications at first instance Processing asylum applications at first instance The new Section V (Immigration) was established within the Federal Ministry of the Interior after an organisational restructuring. The new section brings together resources and knowledge on affairs related to asylum and immigration, including border control, Aliens Police, reception, residency, citizenship and return. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Estonia Flag Estonia 2022 Legislative Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The new Victim Support Act entered into force, which aims to further improve the availability and quality of victim support services, for example for victims of human trafficking. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Finland Flag Finland 2020 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection The new, general medical screening protocol in Finland, developed through the AMIF-funded TERTTU project, was launched and started to be implemented in 2020. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Romania Flag Romania 2021 Policy Processing asylum applications at first instance Processing asylum applications at first instance The new National Strategy on Immigration 2021-2024 was approved, together with the Action Plan to implement the national strategy, with objectives related to making the national asylum system more efficient. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Czech Flag Czech Republic 2019 Legislative Return of former applicants Return of former applicants The non-refoulement check within the return decision procedure was simplified. The check is no longer required for persons from safe countries of origin, unless the person states that in his/her specific case there are concerns about his/her safety in case of return. CZ LEG 01 2019
Norway Flag Norway 2022 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection The Norwegian government and the Directorate of Immigration (UDI) increased capacity in the national arrival centre, in emergency accommodation, including accommodation for displaced persons from Ukraine, and in ordinary reception centres. A scheme for alternative temporary reception space was also launched. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Norway Flag Norway 2020 Legislative Content of protection Content of protection The Norwegian government passed a law which provides the possibility to increase the length of introduction programmes and training by 6 months due to the pandemic. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Norway Flag Norway 2020 Legislative Content of protection Content of protection The Norwegian parliament passed a bill amending the Social Services Act, which requires third-country nationals older than 30 years with insufficient Norwegian knowledge to participate in language training as a condition to receive financial support. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Norway Flag Norway 2021 Policy Processing asylum applications at first instance Processing asylum applications at first instance The notification of negative decisions for Afghan applicants was suspended between July 2021 and January 2022. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Belgium Flag Belgium 2021 Policy Processing asylum applications at first instance Processing asylum applications at first instance The notification of negative decisions was temporarily suspended for applicants from Afghanistan in August 2021 and the suspension was fully lifted on 2 March 2022. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
France Flag France 2019 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection The number of places was substantially increased in France, including the creation of a new type of reception facility in Île-de-France (CAIR). EASO Asylum Report 2020
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Policy Reception of applicants for international protection Reception of applicants for international protection The number of reception places was substantially increased. The Minister for Migration announced the creation of 5 000 additional places. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Spain Flag Spain 2019 Policy Processing asylum applications at first instance Processing asylum applications at first instance The number of staff working on asylum was increased. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Austria Flag Austria 2020 Policy Content of protection Content of protection The number of withdrawals initiated by the BFA continued to increase. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2021 Institutional Country of origin information Country of origin information The Office for Country Information and Language Analysis (Team Onderzoek en Expertise Land en Taal (TOELT)) was divided into two departments, one employing the Country Specialists and Linguists (TOELT 01) and the other employing the Employees of the Regional Information Centres and the Coordinators Interpreters (TOELT 02). EUAA Asylum Report 2022
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
Latvia Flag Latvia 2022 Institutional Information provision on the asylum procedure Information provision on the asylum procedure The Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs developed new leaflets and piloted a hotline to provide information on the asylum procedure. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
Latvia Flag Latvia 2021 Policy Access to procedure icon Access to procedure The Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs in Latvia committed to introduce improvements to the registration system by December 2021. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Malta Flag Malta 2019 Policy Processing asylum applications at first instance Processing asylum applications at first instance The Office of the Refugee Commissioner and the IT Unit of the Ministry for Home Affairs, National Security and Law Enforcement improved the national asylum database that records relevant data pertaining to applications for international protection, as well as for registering asylum seekers. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Malta Flag Malta 2019 Policy Processing asylum applications at first instance Processing asylum applications at first instance The Office of the Refugee Commissioner started implementing changes to reporting on case allocation and backlog. EASO Asylum Report 2020
France Flag France 2021 Policy Interpretation services Interpretation services The OFII medical service launched a 6-month pilot project in three major cities, and medical screening is done in the presence of an interpreter for all new asylum applicants. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Latvia Flag Latvia 2021 Policy Return of former applicants Return of former applicants The Ombudsperson concluded aiming to improve the mechanism for monitoring the forced removal of third-country nationals to ensure compliance with Directive 2008/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008. EUAA Asylum Report 2022