Presentation byDavid Costello

Refugee Applications Commissioner and Deputy Chairperson European Asylum Support Office

Ireland's International Protection System including EU and international

influencesIIEA Young Professionals' Network

Monday 12 September 2016

1

Introductory Points

• Refugee Applications Commissioner

– Statutory office established in 2000

– Applications for international protection (refugee and subsidiary protection)

– Family reunification for persons with refugee status

• Inputting into domestic and EU asylum policy

2

What is International Protection?

Two forms:

• Refugee status

• Subsidiary Protection

3

Some Definitions

1. Who is an asylum seeker?

An asylum seeker is a person who seeks to be recognised as a refugee in accordance with the terms of the 1951 Geneva Convention relating to the status of refugees and the related 1967 Protocol, which provide the foundation for the international system of protection of refugees.

2. Definition of a refugee

The definition of a refugee in Irish law is “a person who, owing to a well founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his or her nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of that country; or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his or her former habitual residence, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it...”.

4

3. What is subsidiary protection?

Subsidiary protection is granted, when the applicant does not fulfil the requirements for becoming a refugee, but is otherwise in need of international protection.

A person eligible for subsidiary protection means a person:

(a) who is not a national of a Member State,

(b) who does not qualify as a refugee,

(c) in respect of whom substantial grounds have been shown for believing that the person concerned, if returned to his or her country of origin, would face a real risk of suffering serious harm and who is unable or, owing to such risk, unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of that country, and

(d) who is not excluded from being eligible for subsidiary protection.

(Serious harm includes death penalty, torture or inhuman or degrading treatment in country of origin.)

5

IrelandProtection: Policy and Legislation

Irish Protection

System

EU Law

Domestic Law

International Law

6

European Asylum Support

Office (EASO)

Operational Support

Legal Framework for International Protection

• Domestic Law - Refugee Act 1996- International Protection Act 2015

(to be commenced)

• EU Law (Regulations and Directives)

• International Law

e.g. 1951 Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and 1967 Protocol

7

Irish Protection Institutions

Office of the Refugee Applications Commissioner

First instance – Consideration of asylum and subsidiary protection

Refugee Appeals Tribunal

Second Instance – Consideration of asylum and subsidiary protection (appeal)

Minister /

Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service (INIS)

Deportations and leave to remain

8

Number of asylum applications per year from 1993 to 2015

Table 1. Number of applications per year from 1993 to 2015

1993 91 133.3

1994 362 297.8

1995 424 17.1

1996 1,179 178.1

1997 3,883 229.3

1998 4,626 19.1

1999 7,724 67.0

2000 10,938 41.6

2001 10,325 -5.6

2002 11,634 12.7

2003 7,900 -32.1

2004 4,766 -39.7

2005 4,323 -9.3

2006 4,314 -0.2

2007 3,985 -7.6

2008 3,866 -3.0

2009 2,689 -30.4

2010 1,939 -27.9

2011 1,290 -33.5

2012 956 -25.9

2013 946 -1.0

2014 1,448 53.1

2015 3,276 126.2

Total 92,884

Change on

previous year

(%)Year Applications

0

1,000

2,000

3,000

4,000

5,000

6,000

7,000

8,000

9,000

10,000

11,000

12,000

19

93

19

95

19

97

19

99

20

01

20

03

20

05

20

07

20

09

20

11

20

13

20

15

9

International Protection – Overview and

Comparison 2015 vs 2016 year to end June

2015

1,392,155 applications for international protection in the EU+ (EU plus Switzerland and Norway)

Top 5 countries:

1. Syria

2. Afghanistan

3. Iraq

4. Pakistan

5. Eritrea

(Source: EASO Annual Report 2015)

2016 to end June

632,000 applications for international protection in the EU+ to end June 2016.

Top 5 countries

1. Syria

2. Afghanistan

3. Iraq

4. Pakistan

5. Nigeria

(Source: EASO Latest asylum trends – June 2016)

10

Applications for refugee status (Ireland)in 2015 (31/12) – top 5 nationalities

11

Applications for refugee status (Ireland)in 2016 (31/07) – top 5 nationalities

12

Common EU Asylum Policy

Legislation on:

• Procedures for International Protection (IP)

• Eligibility criteria for IP

• Reception Conditions

• EU Dublin Regulation – which EU country processes an application?

• EURODAC Regulation fingerprinting

13

European Asylum Support Office

• EU Agency established in 2010 to act as a centre of excellence and support in asylum matters including practical co-operation between Member States.

– Permanent Support: Quality of asylum process; common training programmes; common approaches to country of origin research

– Special Support: Capacity building in Member States; tailor made assistance such as relocation and resettlement programmes.

– Emergency Support: to MS with pressure on their protection processes – Greece, Italy, Romania, Bulgaria, Cyprus etc.

14

European Asylum Support Office – contd.

– Information and Analysis: Trends, statistics, early warning reports, evidence based research for policymakers.

– Third country support: training and advice – non EU states.

15

EU Migration Crisis 2015/2016

16

Overview – Arrivals in Greece and Italy 2015

Greece

Arrivals in 2015: 857,363

(1,075.3% increase over 2014)

Top 5 countries of origin 2015:

1. Syria

2. Afghanistan

3. Iraq

4. Pakistan

5. Iran

(Source: International Organisation for Migration)

Italy

Arrivals in 2015: 153,842

Top 5 countries of origin 2015:

1. Eritrea

2. Nigeria

3. Somalia

4. Sudan

5. Gambia

(Source: International Organisation for Migration)

17

Arrivals in Greece and Italy to 30 June 2016

Arrivals in Greece to 30 June 2016: 160,115

Arrivals in Italy to 30 June 2016: 70,222

Top 5 countries of origin for arrivals in Greece and Italy:

• Q1: Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Iran

• Q2: Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, Nigeria

(Source: International Organisation for Migration)

18

EU Relocation Programme

1. Council Decision (EU) 2015/1523 of 14 September 2015 establishing provisional measures in the area of international protection for the benefit of Italy and of Greece.

2. Council Decision (EU) 2015/1601 of 22 September 2015 establishing provisional measures in the area of international protection for the benefit of Italy and of Greece.

3. The EU-Turkey Statement of 18 March 2016.

19

Irish Staff deployed to Greece and Italy under the European Asylum Support Office

(EASO)

Functions:

• Meet migrants arriving on the Greek islands to inform them of Relocation and encourage them to apply.

• Perform vulnerability assessments of applicants (many were subject to torture and other traumatic events in Syria).

• Perform admissibility interviews to ascertain if valid asylum claims existed for admission to the Greek asylum process and possible subsequent relocation.

20

Relocation in Numbers as of 5 September 2016

Numbers relocated from Greece: 3,493

Top 10 states of relocation:

• France 1,431

• Netherlands 439

• Finland 419

• Portugal 307

• Spain 151

• Romania 147

• Luxembourg 104

• Belgium 90

• Lithuania 77

• Slovenia 60

Numbers relocated from Italy: 1,026

Top 10 states of relocation:

• France 231

• Finland 180

• Netherlands 178

• Portugal 171

• Spain 50

• Sweden 39

• Switzerland 34

• Belgium 29

• Malta 26

• Luxembourg 20

• Germany 20

21

Ireland and Relocation

• Irish Refugee Protection Programme (Multi Agency approach)

• 69 migrants have arrived in Ireland under relocation as of 8 September 2016.

• 37 of these 69 have received refugee status.

• 40 additional relocation migrants are expected in the coming weeks.

• 63 further potential relocation migrants have met with Irish officials in Athens.

• Level of intake under Programme being increased.

22

International ProtectionFuture Challenges for Ireland

• International Protection Act 2015 – due to be commenced by end 2016

• Single Procedure – all main grounds (refugee status, subsidiary protection and permission to remain) to be processed together in new International Protection Office.

• Appeals to a new International Protection Appeals Tribunal (Protection only).More efficient use of resources.More effective, therefore speedier decisions.Applicants get clarity re their status earlier.

• Reforms in EU Law.• Increased commitments under EU Relocation Programme.

23

Questions?

24