REGINE Regularisations in Europe Final Report - European ...

OPTION 11: REVIEW OF ADMINISTRATIVE PRACTICE IN REGARD TO
ASYLUM AND SUBSIDIARY PROTECTION AND ELABORATION OF
PROCEDURES ENSURING EQUAL ACCESS TO INTERNATIONAL
PROTECTION ACROSS THE EUROPEAN UNION.
Description: To improve the equal access to asylum and subsidiary protection across Europe, a
European asylum review board should be established, which should be charged to evaluate
administrative practices in EU Member States. The Commission should elaborate proposals for
addressing lack of harmonised practices despite harmonised legislation, including the establishment of
a European asylum appeals board whose decisions would have direct effect, or other options. Such an
appeals board could be integrated with the proposed European Asylum Support Office (which has a
more limited mandate, including possible review).
Rationale and possible impact: NGO responses to the ICMPD NGO questionnaire have highlighted
that one of the reasons for the presence of illegal immigrants are major protection deficiencies of the
asylum system. In turn, addressing these deficiencies would also reduce the need for regularisation,
while generally improving the asylum system. According to NGOs, deficiencies are not so much due
to gaps in legal protection than to major difficulties in administrative practice, which result in uneven
access to international protection in the European Union. Various other evidence, including ECRE
reports, UNHCR opinions and highly varying recognition rates for specific groups of asylum
seekers 362 corroborates this view. Innovative measures which would focus on the administrative level
could potentially have a major impact on improving equal access to international protection
What supports EC action? There is, in principle, commitment among Member States to create a
common European asylum system.
What works against EC action? The implementation of the directives in the area of asylum, in line
with the principle of subsidiarity, is a matter of Member States. Harmonisation of administrative
practices by contrast could be seen as breaching this principle. In addition, an asylum review board or
a European appeals board may be opposed in principle.
OPTION 12: STRENGTHENING THE RIGHT TO FAMILY REUNIFICATION
(DIRECTIVE 2003/86/EC)
Description: the idea of this proposal is to close gaps with respect to the right to family life. This
would include strengthening the rights of de facto family units already resident (i.e., extend rights to
persons not formally admitted as family members), permitting family reunification for unmarried
partners, 363 setting precise conditions of housing requirements and minimum income (which, are nonexistent
in some MS, and set very high in others). The actual operation of the Directive should be
reviewed, and policy proposals developed from detailed examination of the highly variable practices
across the EU.
362 For example, Chechen asylum seekers with high recognition rates in Austria (one of the main receiving
countries for this category of refugees) and low recognition rates in Germany.
363 Unmarried partners are already admitted on this basis by Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, the
Netherlands, Sweden and the UK.
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