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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 ascending Development Source
Cyprus Flag Cyprus 2021 Legislative Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The Deputy Minister for Social Welfare, the Minister for Justice and the police signed a memorandum in Cyprus to strengthen cooperation for the referral and support to survivors of human trafficking. The national reception strategy also established assessments and referral mechanisms as core objectives. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
France Flag France 2021 Legislative Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure A draft law on child protection was adopted by the National Assembly and by the Senate. The draft includes several provisions relevant to unaccompanied children. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Greece Flag Greece 2021 Policy Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The Ministry for Migration and Asylum established a National Mechanism for the Detection and Protection of Unaccompanied Children, in cooperation with the IOM, Aris, METAdrasi and the Network for Children’s Rights. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Ireland Flag Ireland 2021 Policy Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The prioritisation procedure was updated, which re-confirmed that asylum interviews for unaccompanied minor applicants can be scheduled with priority. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Italy Flag Italy 2021 Policy Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The Department of Civil Liberties and Migration published an operational handbook on the identification and reception of unaccompanied children. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Poland Flag Poland 2021 Policy Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure A special centre for single women and single mothers, operated by a contractor, was closed. The authorities were planning to construct a new, state-owned centre for women with AMIF funding. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
Switzerland Flag Switzerland 2021 Policy Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure The SEM underlined that addressing the issue of violence against women would remain a priority in 2021 and the authority planned to hold information and training sessions for asylum and reception staff to raise awareness of all forms of violence against women. EUAA Asylum Report 2022
France Flag France 2022 Legislative Applicants with special needs Persons with special needs in the asylum procedure A new law was adopted on child protection, including the requirement for child welfare services to inform unaccompanied minors about the possibility to apply for international protection and the support which is available for them. EUAA Asylum Report 2023
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
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
Lithuania Flag Lithuania 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Training on working with unaccompanied minors was offered to reception centre staff. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Sweden Flag Sweden 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Since 1 January 2019, Sweden does not recognise the validity of child marriages from abroad, so the agency updated its standards for handling cases related to married child applicants and developed relevant information material in collaboration with the National Board of Health and Welfare. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Norway Flag Norway 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The authorities in Norway launched the website, Asylbarn, dedicated specifically for children in the asylum procedure. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The IND launched a special project and hired additional staff to reduce the backlog in applications from unaccompanied minors and shorten the overall length of the asylum procedure. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Legislative Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The Aliens Circular was amended to clarify that an age assessment takes place in two separate sessions, one with the AVIM and one with the IND. Employees of the same public authority assess the age independently, but they can attend the same assessment session. NL LEG 05 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
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
Finland Flag Finland 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups A guide was published for case workers on domestic violence in the context of asylum. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Italy Flag Italy 2019 Legislative Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Within the Protection System for Beneficiaries of International Protection and Unaccompanied Foreign Minors (SIPROIMI), the Ministry of the Interior in Italy allocated funds to finance projects, organised by local authorities, related to unaccompanied minors. IT LEG 04 2019
Belgium Flag Belgium 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The CGRS updated its guide for unaccompanied minors applying for international protection and published two new guides on accompanied children’s right to be heard in the asylum procedure (one for children, one for parents or guardians). EASO Asylum Report 2020
Netherlands Flag Netherlands 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups The COA developed a comic strip for minor applicants about everyday life in a reception centre, appointed a contact person and organised swimming lessons for children. EASO Asylum Report 2020
Cyprus Flag Cyprus 2019 Policy Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups Unaccompanied minors and vulnerable groups A safe zone for vulnerable applicants was designed with EASO’s support in the First Reception Centre “Pournara” in Cyprus (not yet operational). EASO Asylum Report 2020