Article 28 L. 4825/2021 (replacing para. 4 Article 8 L 4375/2016) provides that the Regional Services of
the RIS are the:
❖ Reception and Identification Centres (RICs),
❖ Controlled Temporary Accommodation Centres and
❖ Closed Controlled Access Centres (CCACs), which are structured and have similar
responsibilities to the RICs and which include distinct spaces for the operation of Temporary
Accommodation facilities and Pre-Removal Centres.
The same article also provides for the operation of distinct spaces, within the perimeter of the
aforementioned types of accommodation, that should fulfil specifications appropriate for the
accommodation of third country nationals or stateless persons belonging to the vulnerable groups
prescribed by law.
Overall, the Greek reception system has been long criticised as inadequate, not least in the M.S.S. v.
Belgium and Greece ruling of the ECtHR. Subsequent jurisprudence of the ECtHR has also found
violations of Article 3 ECHR due to the failure of national authorities to provide asylum applicants with
adequate living conditions.975
The Reception and Identification Service (RIS), operating under the General Secretariat for the Reception
of Asylum Applicants of the MoMA, is the responsible authority for the reception of asylum applicants, 976
including of unaccompanied minors. 977 Following the entry into force of the Asylum Code and relevant
amendments by L. 4960/2022, the Special Secretary for Unaccompanied Minors (SSUM) of the MoMA
remained the competent authority for the protection of UAM, including for the referral and accompaniment
of UAM to dedicated accommodation facilities for UAM and the implementation of Guardianship, 978 until
the transfer of its responsibilities (under Article 39 pf P.D. 106/2020) to the new General Secretariat for
Vulnerable Persons & Institutional Protection establishedwith Article 6(1) of P.D. 77/2023 (A' 130/
27.6.2023).
The capacity and occupancy of the reception system can be seen in the following table:
Capacity and occupancy of the reception system: December 2025
Centre
Capacity
Occupancy (nominal)
Islands (for islands statistics see Reception and Identification)
Lesvos CCAC
3,881
1,145
Samos CΑCC
3,664
1,796
Chios CCAC
1,014
713
Leros CΑCC
2,152
1,771
Kos CΑCC
3,455
1,363
Mainland (as of June 2025 per reply to parliamentary scrutiny)
Malakasa RIC
2,608
1,876
Diavata RIC
802
777
Fylakio RIC
756
474
Ritsona
2.352
1,246
Koutsochero
1,072
338
Schisto
1,221
552
Thiva
892
667
Corinth
800
517
975
976
977
978
ECtHR, F.H. v. Greece, Application No 78456/11, Judgment of 31 July 2014; Al.K. v. Greece, Application
No 63542/11, Judgment of 11 March 2015; Amadou v. Greece, Application No 37991/11, Judgment of
4 February 2016; S.G. v. Greece, Application No 46558/12, Judgment of 18 May 2017, A.D. v Greece,
Application no. 55363/19, Judgement of 4 April 2023.
Article 1(ιστ) Αsylum Code.
Article 64 (2) Asylum Code as amended.
Article 64 Asylum Code.
205