Decision of Rejection for Asylum

2nd Instance and Appeals Authority

In case your application is rejected, or in case you are granted a subsidiary protection status and you consider that you are entitled to the refugee status, you have the right to appeal before the Appeals Authority (2nd instance). You must submit your appeal to the Appeals Authority (2nd Instance). You must submit your appeal to the competent Regional Asylum Office or to the Asylum Unit which issued the rejection, within the deadline mentioned on the decision that you received.

In case you are staying in a Facility that is located far from the Regional Asylum Office (or Asylum Unit) that issued your decision, you may submit your appeal at the nearest Asylum Service Office. In that case, the appeal is sent through e-mail to the Asylum Office or Asylum Unit that issued the decision on the same day. In order to submit your appeal, you need to come in person to the competent office of the Asylum Service and bring the relevant document (appeal), signed by you or your lawyer. In case you are detained, you need to submit you appeal to the Supervisor of your detention facility or center, and he will sent your appeal by fax or other digital medium to the Regional Asylum Office or Asylum Unit that issued the decision.

You are going to be given a new International Protection Applicant’s Card upon submitting your appeal.

The Asylum Service has a registry of lawyers who may support you free of charge during the time when your appeal is submitted and examined at the second instance. You may apply online for legal assistance.

Your appeal will be examined by an Independent Appeals Committee. The Independent Appeals Committee usually examines appeals based on the documents in your file and does not call you for an interview. However, you will be informed regarding the date of examination of your appeal, as well as any deadlines if you wish to submit additional evidence in order to be taken into account by the Independent Appeals Authority.

On the date that your appeal is discussed, it is your obligation to be present in person at the office of the Appeals Authority. In case you do not appear, your appeal will be rejected.. 

In case you are staying in a Facility and neither you nor your authorized lawyer are able to be present, you will have to ask for a certificate to be sent to the Appeals authority by the Director of the Reception or Accommodation Facility, until the day prior to the date of discussion of your appeal, certifying that you were staying in this facility during the date of discussion of your appeal.

In case a restriction of movement or an obligation to stay at a specific place located outside the Region of Attica has been imposed on you, you may be represented by your authorized attorney or send a certificate, issued by the nearest police station or the Center for Citizen Services (KEP) of the place where you stay, until the day prior to the date of discussion of your appeal, certifying that you presented yourself before them.

In case your lawyer fails to appear and the aforementioned certificates are not submitted to the Asylum Service, your appeal will be rejected..

While the examination of your appeal is pending, you may withdraw your asylum application. You must appear in person at the Asylum Service Office where you lodged your appeal, or at the nearest Asylum Service Office to your place of residence, and explicitly withdraw your appeal in writing. In case you withdraw your appeal, it will not be examined and you will have to leave the country in case you do not possess any other form of residence permit.

The Independent Appeals Authority may consider that you are no more interested in the continuation of the examination of your appeal (implicit withdrawal) and will not examine your appeal in the following cases:

1. if you refuse to provide information of great importance for your application, or
2. if you escape from your place of detention or
3. if you do not comply with the obligations the Police has imposed to you instead of detaining you or
4. if you leave the area of residence which was determined for you by the authorities without informing them beforehand or
5. f) if you leave the country without asking permission from the Asylum Service or
6. if you do not immediately inform the Asylum Service regarding changes in your address and your contact information, or
7. if you do not contact the Appeals Authority after being requested to do so, or
8. if you fail to produce documents that you probably have or should have in your possession and you are able to produce,
9. if you do not go to renew your card during the next working day after its expiry date at the latest.

In case the Appeals Committee decides to call you for an interview, you will be notified accordingly ten (10) business days before the date of the interview, at the latest. You have the right to go to the Appeals Committee escorted by a lawyer or other counselor.

The Appeals Committee will decide to either grant you refugee status, subsidiary protection status, or reject your appeal.

The decision upon your appeal may be issued within a time period ranging from fifteen (15) days to three (3) months, depending on your personal case.

In case your appeal is rejected, or in case the decision grants you a status of subsidiary protection and you believe that you are entitled to refugee status, you may submit an application of revocation (cancellation) to the competent local Administrative First Instance Court within thirty (30) days starting on the next day after the decision was served to you. The cancellation application does not have an automatic suspensive effect, meaning that your removal from the country is possible in case your appeal was rejected.

In case your application is rejected, you will be detained in a Pre-Departure Detention Center until your removal is performed or your application is finally approved. You will remain detained in the Pre-Departure Detention Center even in case you have lodged a subsequent application and/or submitted a revocation application, and/or a suspension application. In case your appeal is rejected, the Independent Appeals Authority will issue a decision for your return to your country.