revoked once the registration by the RIC is completed. A ‘restriction of freedom of movement’ is imposed to newcomers, preventing applicants from exiting the RIC until their registration and identification by the RIS. At the same time, a removal decision “based on the readmission procedure” and a pre-removal detention order are issued by the competent Police Directorate upon arrival, parallel to the decision of the Head of the RIC. The removal decision and detention order are suspended by a “postponement of deportation” decision of the General Regional Police Director. The latter decision imposes a geographical restriction, ordering the individual not to leave the island and to reside – in most cases – in the RIC or another accommodation facility on the island until the end of the asylum procedure. Once the asylum application is lodged, the same geographical restriction pursuant to Decision 1140/2019 of the Minister of Citizen Protection, is applied by the Asylum Service as well as by the RIS, by including relevant marking on the International Protection Applicant Card. For more details on the geographical limitation on the Greek Eastern Aegean Islands, see Reception Conditions, Freedom of movement. It is due to this practice of indiscriminate and en masse imposition of the geographical limitation measures to newly arrived persons on the islands that a significant deterioration of the living conditions on the islands has occurred. Following criticism by national and international organisations and actors, and due to limited capacity to maintain and run closed facilities on the islands with high population numbers, the “restriction of freedom” as a de facto detention measure was no longer applied in the RICs, as of the end of 2016, with the exception of Kos. Although the Rule of Procedure of Closed Controlled Access Centres on the islands does not provide for a blanket prohibition of exit, the regime of de facto detention has been reintroduced in practice since the implementation of the CCAC. According to the Asylum Code, this ‘restriction of liberty’ which amounts to de facto detention shall not exceed 25 days from the day of arrival in the RIC or CCAC, Also, the ‘restriction of liberty’ is provided in the Law by way of exception.230 However, upon arrival, newcomers are placed under arbitrary restriction of liberty until their registration by the RIS is concluded. Until then, people are denied exit from the CCAC and in most cases they are restricted in the so-called ‘waiting areas’, in which dire and substandard condition prevail. According to GCR observations, in certain cases, the imposition of restriction of liberty was not waived before the exhaustion of 25-days period, although the registration of newcomers might have been concluded. By way of illustration, between 1 July – 31 August 2023, over 4,000 people were brought to the Closed Controlled Access Centers (CCACs) on Samos and Lesvos and placed in unlawful detention while awaiting registration of their asylum application.231 Since summer 2023, due to increased arrivals, delays and shortcomings related to the registration procedures by the RIS, in many cases applicants remained under arbitrary restriction of their liberty for more than 25 days. In Samos, legal organisations have consistently identified cases of applicants who were deprived of their liberty for more than 25 days, sometimes even up to 58 days.232 According to testimonies collected by GCR, in numerous cases, the waiting period within which newcomers remained confined until registration exceeded 25 days also in Lesvos and Kos. Decisions imposing the ‘restriction of liberty’ shall be issued by the Head of the RIS within five days from the arrival. However, it has been observed that these are not always issued and/or notified as provided by the Law to the de facto detained persons. Moreover, in a considerable number of cases, said decisions are issued days after the detention has begun. In addition, the decisions mention as day of arrival the day of issuance of the decision, therefore extending in practice the time a person may be confined. Moreover, applicants are often asked to sign orders that are back-dated. 230 231 232 Article 40 (a) L.4939/2022 Joint CSO Statement, Unlawful detention and worsening conditions: Over 4,000 asylum seekers unlawfully detained on Samos and Lesvos, 19 September 2023, available at: https://tinyurl.com/3w8natsr. Joint CSO Statement, Not Again in 2024 Call for Upholding Human Rights in the Samos Closed Controlled Access Centre, 31 January 2024, available at: https://tinyurl.com/w37h9mfb. 58