Dublin returnees face serious difficulties both in re-accessing the asylum procedure and reception conditions (which are virtually inexistent) upon return. 523 In fact, returnees face the risk of being subjected to onward refoulement to Türkiye, following the designation of Türkiye as a safe third country in 2021 (see Safe third country concept). Finally, it should be mentioned that applicants who are subject to the EU-Türkiye statement and left the islands in breach of the geographical restriction imposed on them, will be returned to said island upon return to Greece from another Member State within the framework of the Dublin Regulation, by virtue of a 2016 police circular.524 Their application will be examined under the fast-track border procedure, which offers limited guarantees.525 For further information about the situation of beneficiaries of international protection returned to Greece, see ‘Return of beneficiaries of international protection to Greece’ under Housing. 3. Admissibility procedure 3.1. General (scope, criteria, time limits) Under Article 89 Asylum Code, an application can be considered inadmissible on the following grounds: ❖ Another EU Member State has granted international protection status to the applicant; ❖ Another EU Member State has accepted responsibility under the Dublin Regulation for the applicant; ❖ When the First Country of Asylum concept is applied; ❖ When the Safe Third Country concept is applied; ❖ The application is a Subsequent Application and no “new essential elements” have been presented; ❖ A family member has submitted a separate application to the family application without justification for lodging a separate claim. Unless otherwise provided, the Asylum Service must decide on the admissibility of an application within 30 days.526 The safe third country concept and its application vis à vis Türkiye Article 91(5) Asylum Code, transposing Article 38(4) of Directive 2013/32/EU (Asylum Procedures Directive), provides that where the third country to which an applicant is meant to be returned does not allow the applicant to enter its territory, their application shall be examined on the merits by the Competent Examination Authorities. In practice, the examination of the safe third country concept used to take place under the scope of the fast-track border procedure since 2016. More specifically, up until June 2021 it was applied exclusively to Syrian nationals who fell under the EU-Türkiye Statement, meaning those who had entered Greece via the Aegean islands and who were subject to a geographical restriction. Syrians whose geographical restriction was lifted were then channelled to the mainland and were examined under the regular procedure. The situation changed significantly in 2021 following the Joint Ministerial Decision issued on 7 June 2021, designating Türkiye as a safe third country (STC) for asylum applicants coming from Syria, Afghanistan, Somalia, Pakistan and Bangladesh.527 523 524 525 526 527 RSA, Dublin returns to Greece, 21 October 2021, available at: https://bit.ly/3tHwi7T: ‘At the moment, the Greek reception system is undergoing a gradual transformation through the dismantling of open housing facilities in favour of large-scale ‘closed controlled centres’, while a coherent policy to support integration of people granted international protection is still lacking. Despite these circumstances, EU Member States and Schengen Associated Countries continue to send thousands of Dublin take back requests to return asylum seekers to Greece. In line with a Recommendation523 from the European Commission, Dublin transfers to Greece are carried out following the provision of individual assurances by the Greek Dublin Unit relating to the treatment of returnees in line with the EU asylum acquis.’ Police Circular No 1604/16/1195968, available in Greek at: https://tinyurl.com/ye85mfbc. See to this regard: RSA/PRO ASYLl, Legal Status and Living Conditions of a Syrian asylum-seeker upon his return to Greece under the Dublin Regulation, December 2019, available at: https://bit.ly/3fMEfzH. Article 88(2) Asylum Code. Different deadlines are provided, e.g, for subsequent applications; when the safe third country concept is examined under the fast-track border procedure, etc. Joint Ministerial Decision (JMD) 42799/2021, Gov. Gazette 2425/Β/7-6-2021, available in Greek at: https://tinyurl.com/2z8588nb . 102