Table of Contents Glossary .................................................................................................................................................... 5 List of Abbreviations ............................................................................................................................... 6 Statistics ................................................................................................................................................... 8 Overview of the legal framework .......................................................................................................... 11 Overview of main changes since the previous report update .......................................................... 23 Asylum Procedure ................................................................................................................................. 27 A. General ....................................................................................................................................... 27 1. Flow chart ................................................................................................................................. 27 2. Types of procedures ................................................................................................................ 27 3. List of authorities that intervene in each stage of the procedure ............................................. 27 4. Determining authority ............................................................................................................... 28 5. Short overview of the asylum procedure.................................................................................. 30 B. Access to the procedure and registration .............................................................................. 32 1. Access to the territory and push backs .................................................................................... 32 2. Reception and identification procedure.................................................................................... 58 3. Registration of the asylum application ..................................................................................... 74 C. Procedures ................................................................................................................................ 79 1. Regular procedure ................................................................................................................... 79 2. Dublin ..................................................................................................................................... 100 3. Admissibility procedure .......................................................................................................... 111 4. Border procedure (border and transit zones) ......................................................................... 121 5. Fast-track border procedure (Eastern Aegean islands) ......................................................... 123 6. Accelerated procedure ........................................................................................................... 140 7. National protection statuses and return procedure ................................................................ 143 D. Guarantees for vulnerable groups ........................................................................................ 144 1. Identification ........................................................................................................................... 144 2. Special procedural guarantees .............................................................................................. 158 3. Use of medical reports ........................................................................................................... 162 4. Legal representation of unaccompanied children ..................................................................... 164 E. Subsequent applications ....................................................................................................... 167 F. The safe country concepts .................................................................................................... 172 1. Safe country of origin ............................................................................................................. 173 2. Safe third country ................................................................................................................... 175 3. First country of asylum ........................................................................................................... 187 G. Information for asylum seekers and access to NGOs and UNHCR ................................... 187 1. Provision of information on the procedure ............................................................................. 187 2. Access to NGOs and UNHCR................................................................................................ 189 H. Differential treatment of specific nationalities in the procedure ....................................... 191 Reception Conditions .......................................................................................................................... 194 A. Access and forms of reception conditions .......................................................................... 195 Criteria and restrictions to access reception conditions ......................................................... 195 Forms and levels of material reception conditions ................................................................. 197 Reduction or withdrawal of reception conditions.................................................................... 200 Freedom of movement ........................................................................................................... 202 B. Housing .................................................................................................................................... 204 1. Types of accommodation ....................................................................................................... 204 2. Conditions in reception facilities ............................................................................................. 208 C. Employment and education ................................................................................................... 218 1. 2. 3. 4. 3