to those who formerly resided in Syria who could provide original documents such as passports, or who had been identified as Syrians/persons with a former residence in Syria within the scope of the Reception and Identification Procedure, provided that the EU-Türkiye Statement and the fast-track border procedure did not apply to their cases.300 The specific fast-track procedure (examination in the merits) is still applicable to this day, though admissibility proceedings may precede it. However, Joint Ministerial Decision 458568/2021, issued in December 2021 under Article 86 IPA, designated Türkiye as a safe country for applicants from Syria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Somalia.301 This was reinforced by Joint Ministerial Decision no. 538595/2023, issued on December 15, 2023, on the “Determination of third countries characterised as safe and establishing of a national list as defined in article 91 of Law 4939/2022.”302 As a result, applications lodged by those falling under the provisions of the aforementioned JMDs are since firstly channelled through the admissibility procedure to assess whether Türkiye is a safe third country and whether their cases are admissible and should be examined on the merits (for more details, see also Safe Third Country). 1.3. Personal interview Indicators: Regular Procedure: Personal Interview 1. Is a personal interview of the asylum seeker in most cases conducted in practice in the regular procedure? Yes No v If so, are interpreters available in practice, for interviews? Yes No 2. In the regular procedure, is the interview conducted by the authority responsible for taking the decision? Yes No 3. Are interviews conducted through video conferencing? Frequently Rarely Never 4. Can the asylum seeker request the interviewer and the interpreter to be of a specific gender? Yes No v If so, is this applied in practice, for interviews? Yes No According to the Asylum Code, the personal interview with the applicant may be omitted where:303 (a) The Asylum Service is able to take a positive decision on the basis of available evidence. (b) It is not practically feasible, in particular when the applicant is declared by a medical professional as unfit or unable to be interviewed due to enduring circumstances beyond their control. Moreover, the law foresees that when the applicant is not in a position to continue the interview for reasons attributable to him/her, “the interview is terminated”. In this case, the applicant is provided with the opportunity to submit a written memo and supplementary evidence within five days.304 According to the Asylum Code, the omission of a personal interview does not adversely affect the in-merits decision on the application, in which the reasons for omitting the interview should be stated.305 The Asylum Code further provides that, where the interview has been scheduled within 15 days from the lodging of the application and where the applicant is vulnerable, the authorities provide him or her with reasonable time not exceeding three days to prepare for the interview and obtain counselling. The possibility to request reasonable time is not granted to asylum seekers who are not vulnerable or whose interview has been scheduled more than 15 days after the submission of the application.306 300 301 302 303 304 305 306 Information provided by the Asylum Service, 31 March 2021. JMD 458568/2021, Gov. Gazette Β' 5949/16-12-2021. JMD 538595/2023, Gov. Gazette B’ 7063/15-12-2023. Article 82(7) Asylum Code. Article 82(7) Asylum Code. Article 82(9) Asylum Code. Article 82(4) Asylum Code. 71