that ‘the absence of the applicant from [Türkiye] for more than a year is a new element’. 383 Additionally, the RAO considered that the link with Türkiye was ‘weakened due to the lapse of a period of more than a year’ according to Article 86(1)(f) of Law 4636/2019. The subsequent application was firstly examined on admissibility based on the safe third country concept under the JMD. During the interview the case worker deemed that Türkiye could not be considered a safe third country for the applicant and found her claim to be admissible. Accordingly, the interview continued, her claim was examined on its merits and she was granted refugee status. In practice, the Asylum Service did not issue nor notify applicants of their admissibility decisions. As a result, many of them received an invitation to their personal interview on its merits before RAOs without prior information on the admissibility decision and the next step of the procedure, thus not being able to prepare for the interview. In many cases, the interview on the merits followed the interview on admissibility on the same day without a prior notification of the applicants and provision of information as regards the different procedures. 3.3. Appeal Indicators: Admissibility Procedure: Appeal Same as regular procedure 1. Does the law provide for an appeal against an inadmissibility decision? Yes No ❖ If yes, is it Judicial Administrative ❖ If yes, is it automatically suspensive Yes Some grounds No According to the Asylum Code, the deadlines for appealing an inadmissibility decision, the automatic suspensive effect of appeals and the format of the Committee examining them depend on the inadmissibility ground invoked in the first instance decision under the regular procedure: 384 Time limits and automatic suspensive effect: Appeals against inadmissibility Ground Deadline (days) Suspensive Format Protection in another EU Member State 20 × Single judge Dublin 15 √ Single judge First country of asylum 20 × Collegial Safe third country 20 √ Collegial Subsequent application with no new elements 5 × Single judge Application by a dependent 20 √ Single judge The Appeals Committee must decide on the appeal within 20 days, as opposed to 30 days in the regular procedure.385 Following the entry into force of the JMD on STC declaring Türkiye a safe third country, most of the cases lodged by Syrians, Afghans and Somalis were considered inadmissible at first instance and quickly confirmed as inadmissible by the Appeals Committees. Appeals Committees do not apply Art. 38(4) of the Procedural Directive with regard to applications having been rejected as inadmissible on the basis of the safe third Country concept vis a vis Türkiye, despite the fact that readmissions to Türkiye have been suspended since March 2020. It is only in a limited number of cases that the Appeals Committees have proceeded to an on merits examination of the Application, 383 384 385 FenixAid, Regional Asylum Office of Thessaloniki recognises a vulnerable single woman from Syria as a refugee after accepting her subsequent application as admissible, 23 June 2022, available in: https://bit.ly/3I8hi94. Article 97(d). Kindly note that the deadline for appealing against decisions issued under the provision of Article 95 Asylum Code (border procedure) is 10 days. Article 101 (d) L4636/2019, as amended by Article 25 (d) L4686/2020. 87