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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 Sort descending Development Source
Ireland Flag Ireland 2020 Legislative Return of former applicants Return of former applicants If the period of validity of a return order made in respect of a person whose application for international protection is determined to be inadmissible expires and the person has not been returned, it will be assumed that the person would like to apply for international protection, which will be notified in writing with an invitation to complete the form. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Lithuania Flag Lithuania 2020 Legislative Return of former applicants Return of former applicants An amendment clarified that a return decision cannot be issued pending the examination of an application for international protection. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Austria Flag Austria 2020 Legislative Return of former applicants Return of former applicants An amendment to the Federal Office for Immigration and Asylum Procedures Act, promulgated on 23 December 2020, requires mandatory return counselling sessions to be held at an advanced stage of the procedure. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Ireland Flag Ireland 2019 Legislative Return of former applicants Return of former applicants Section 3(1) of the Immigration Act 1999 was amended to confirm that the Minister’s power to make a deportation order is subject to the prohibition of refoulement set out in the Immigration Act 1999, Section 3A. The Minister for Justice and Equality clarified that this legal amendment corrected a gap in the law. IE LEG 01 2019
Austria Flag Austria 2019 Legislative Return of former applicants Return of former applicants The act grants a postponement of the time limit for voluntary departure to rejected applicants who are in an apprenticeship. AT LEG 03 2019
Latvia Flag Latvia 2021 Legislative Return of former applicants Return of former applicants Latvia ratified the readmission agreement with Armenia in October 2021. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Sweden Flag Sweden 2020 Policy Return of former applicants Return of former applicants Legal position on the application of ECHR, Article 3, when illness is invoked. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Sweden Flag Sweden 2021 Policy Return of former applicants Return of former applicants Sweden amended and issued legal positions on returns, addressing practical obstacles (RS/048/2021) and the immediate enforcement of a return to the home country including safe countries of origin (RS/071/2021). EUAA Asylum Report 2022
France Flag France 2020 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications The validity period of the asylum application certificate was extended to 10 months for applicants in the regular procedure and 6 months for applicants in the accelerated procedure. These can then be renewed in periods of 6 months. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Ireland Flag Ireland 2020 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications The Withdrawal of the UK from the European Union (Consequential Provisions) Act 2020 introduced the concept of a safe third country into the International Protection Act 2015 and enabled the Minister for Justice to designate by order a country as a safe third country. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Slovenia Flag Slovenia 2019 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications Georgia, Nepal and Senegal were added to the list of safe third countries, while Turkey was removed from the list. SI LEG 01 2019
Cyprus Flag Cyprus 2019 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications By Ministerial Decision on Safe Countries, the accelerated procedure is applied to Georgian nationals. CY LEG 01 2019
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2020 Policy Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications The IND published its updated work instructions on the border procedure. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Romania Flag Romania 2020 Policy Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications Depending on the claims made and documentation available, authorities prioritised applicants from Algeria, Bangladesh, India, Morocco, Pakistan and Tunisia. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2020 Policy Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications The State Secretary for Justice and Security presented the revised list of safe countries of origin. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Iceland Flag Iceland 2020 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications A draft law would add a new Article 35a defining subsequent applications and noting that negative decisions for subsequent applications are automatically reviewed by the Immigration Appeals Board, unless the applicant specifically request otherwise. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Bulgaria Flag Bulgaria 2020 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications Amendments updated the definitions for the terms 'safe country of origin' and 'safe third country' and additional guarantees were added in the law, as foreseen in the recast Asylum Procedures Directive. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Sweden Flag Sweden 2020 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications The Swedish Parliament adopted the government's proposal from December 2020 to incorporate the rules on safe countries of origin in the Aliens Act. The new rules allow the Swedish Migration Agency to consider an application manifestly unfounded if the applicant comes from a country included in the list. The amendments enter into force on 1 May 2021. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Lithuania Flag Lithuania 2020 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications Applications in the accelerated procedure are processed within 10 days. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Greece Flag Greece 2020 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications The implementation of the rules on the exceptional border procedure - which applies to third-country nationals in Reception and Identification Centres in Lesvos, Chios, Samos, Leros and Kos - were extended until 31 December 2021. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Cyprus Flag Cyprus 2020 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications When a subsequent application is deemed to be inadmissible, the appeal needs to be lodged within 15 days. EASO Asylum Report 2021
Greece Flag Greece 2019 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications Greece adopted a list of 12 safe countries of origin: Albania, Algeria, Armenia, Georgia, Ghana, India, Morocco, Senegal, Togo, Tunisia, The Gambia and Ukraine. EL LEG 04 2019
Finland Flag Finland 2019 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications An amendment to the Aliens Act defined the criteria for subsequent applications. FI LEG 01 2019
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
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Legislative Special procedures to process asylum applications Special procedures to process asylum applications An amendment to the Aliens Decree (Vb) established the possibility to omit the personal interview in subsequent applications. NL LEG 06 2019