country concept in these specific cases has been renewed via relevant JMDs issued in December 2022 and December 2023,35 which did not introduce further changes. A fast-track border procedure is applied to applicants subject to the EU-Türkiye statement, i.e., applicants arriving on the Eastern Aegean islands after 20 March 2016. This procedure takes place in the Reception and Identification Centres (RIC) where hotspots are established (Lesvos, Chios, Samos, Leros, Kos). Appeal First instance decisions of the Asylum Service are appealed before the Independent Appeals Committees under the Appeals Authority. An appeal must be lodged within 30 days in the regular procedure, 20 days in the accelerated procedure, in case of an inadmissibility decision or if the applicant is detained, 15 days in the Dublin procedure, 10 days in the border procedure and in the fast-track border procedure and five days in the case of an inadmissibility decision on a subsequent application. Appeals submitted against decisions rejecting applications in the accelerated procedure or dismissed as inadmissible on certain grounds do not have an automatic suspensive effect. The procedure before the Appeals Committees is written. An Application for Annulment against a negative second instance decision can be filed before the First Instance Administrative Court of Athens or Thessaloniki within 30 days from the notification. No automatic suspensive effect is provided and there is no tailored free legal aid. B. Access to the procedure and registration 1. Access to the territory and push backs Indicators: Access to the Territory 1. Are there any reports (NGO reports, media, testimonies, etc.) of people refused entry at the border and returned without examination of their protection needs? Yes No 2. Is there a border monitoring system in place? 3. Who is responsible for border monitoring? Yes National authorities 4. How often is border monitoring carried out? 5. Are there credible reports about pushbacks? Frequently Yes NGOs Rarely No Other Never No Number of arrivals in Greece and statistics A total of 62,119 refugees and migrants arrived in Greece during 2024, as reported by UNHCR, 36 marking a 14,15% increase compared to 2023 (48,721). Of this total, 54,417 persons arrived by sea in 2024 compared to 41,561 persons in 2023. The majority originated from Syria (13,762) Afghanistan (7,650), Egypt (4,396), Eritrea (1,508) State of Palestine (1,408) Yemen (1,408), Sudan (949) and Somalia (909). Nearly half (41%) were children (25,6 %), women (15,4%) and 58,1% were adult men. 37 The number of sea arrivals in 2024 increased by almost 31% compared to 2023 according to UNHCR. 38 Moreover, according to UNHCR,39 7,702 persons arrived in Greece through the Greek-Turkish land border of Evros in 2024, compared to a total of 7,160 persons in 2023. According to police statistics provided to GCR on 16 January 2025,40 7,574 arrests for irregular entry at the Evros land borders were carried out throughout 2024,41 compared to 7,066 arrests in 2023. 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 JMD 734214/2022, available in Greek at: https://bit.ly/3TMbGY3, and JMD 538595/2023, available in Greek at: https://bit.ly/3J4S24L, respectively. UNCHR, Operational Portal, Mediterranean Situation: Greece, available at: https://bit.ly/3WubNsb. Ibid. UNHCR, Greece Sea arrivals Dashboard - December 2024, available here. Ibid. Date provided to GCR by the Directorate of the Hellenic Police, 16 January 2025. UNCHR, Operational Portal, Mediterranean Situation: Greece, available at: https://bit.ly/3WubNsb. 31