C. Procedures 1. Regular procedure 1.1. General (scope, time limits) Indicators: Regular Procedure: General 1. Time limit set in law for the determining authority to make a decision on the asylum application at first instance: 6 months 2. Are detailed reasons for the rejection at first instance of an asylum application shared with the applicant in writing? Yes No 3. Backlog of pending cases at first instance as of 31 December 2023: 29,885 4. Average length of the first instance procedure in (year of reference): Reported at less than 2.5 months on average,288 yet sources do not specify the type of procedure concerned. According to data published by the Ministry of Migration and Asylum,289 the total number of preregistrations of (first time) asylum claims (“registered intentions”) by 23 June 2023 was 10,756, a 13.32% increase compared to the first half of 2022 (9,491).290 A total of 57,891 (first time) applications for asylum were lodged before the Asylum Service in 2023, a significant increase of 98.95% compared to the 29,097 applications lodged in 2022.291 According to article 88(3) Asylum Code, an asylum application should be examined “the soonest possible” and, in any case, within six months of lodging, in the context of the regular procedure. This time limit may be extended for a period not exceeding three months, in cases where a large number of third-country nationals or stateless persons simultaneously apply for international protection. In any event, as per the same article, the examination of the application should not exceed 21 months. Where no decision is issued within the maximum time limit fixed in each case, the asylum seeker has the right to request information from the Asylum Service on the timeframe within which a decision is expected to be issued. As expressly foreseen in the Asylum Code, ‘this does not constitute an obligation on the part of the Asylum Service to issue a decision within a specific time limit.’292 Applicants who are recognised as refugees are given only an excerpt of the relevant decision, which does not include the decision’s reasoning. According to the Asylum Code, in order for the entire decision to be delivered to the individual recognised as a beneficiary of international protection, a special legitimate interest (ειδικό έννομο συμφέρον) must be proven.293 Duration of procedures In 2022, significant delays during the processing of applications at first instance were evident when considering the total number of pending applications in proportion to the time they were pending, with more than 1 in 5 applications registered in previous years still pending at the end of 2022. Namely, according to the Ministry of Migration and Asylum, a total of 17,249 applications were pending by 31 288 289 290 291 292 293 As per the reply of the Minister of Migration and Asylum to parliamentary question no. 764/19.09.2023, 18 October 2023, available in Greek at: https://bit.ly/3TUVRhX. MoMA, Statistics, Consolidated Reports - Overview: December 2023 - International Protection | Appendix A, available at: https://bit.ly/3TxX9jL, tables 7a, 8c. As noted in the same publication, “[s]tatistics on PreRegistrations of applications for International Protection are not currently available for the period of JulyDecember 2023 due to the upgrade of the computer system carried out by the Services of the Ministry of Immigration and Asylum”. MoMA, Statistics, Consolidated Reports - Overview: June 2022 - International Protection | Appendix A, available at: https://bit.ly/3vRPhAD, table 7a. MoMA, Statistics, Consolidated Reports - Overview: December 2022 - International Protection | Appendix A, available at: https://bit.ly/3xB9341, table 8c. Article 88(6) Asylum Code. Article 74(6) Asylum Code. 69