Authority for the year 2022. The program also covers costs for repairs of damages found in the properties during the lease and at the end of the lease. The cost of financing the Program is covered by the budget of the Public Employment Service.’1451 In any case, if the beneficiaries of international protection wish to rent a house, it is stressed that “housing prices in Greece have risen sharply in recent years, partly due to purchases by foreign investors. This has significantly increased the tightness of the housing market, especially in urban areas. […] A large proportion of beneficiaries of international protection are therefore experiencing substantial difficulty in finding permanent shelter.”1452 There is limited accommodation for homeless people in Greece and no shelters are dedicated to recognised refugees or beneficiaries of subsidiary protection. There is no provision for financial support for living costs. In Athens, for example, there are only seven public shelters for homeless people, including Greek citizens and third-country nationals lawfully on the territory. At these shelters, beneficiaries of international protection can apply for accommodation, but it is extremely difficult to be admitted given that these shelters are always overcrowded, have a long waiting list since they are constantly receiving new applications for housing and most of the time, the language barrier arises, excluding them from their admission. For example, Multi-Purpose Centre of the Centre for Reception and Solidarity of Athens Municipality (KYADA) only accepts Greek or English speakers due to a lack of interpretation services and does not admit families1453 or single women. Furthermore, it has to be noted that, in order to be admitted to these shelters, they must first undergo medical examinations to ensure that they are free of communicable diseases. An active AMKA is required for these examinations. From 1 April 2024, recognised refugees will have to be employed in order for their AMKA to be activated. In GCR’s experience, those in need of shelter who lack the financial resources to rent a house remain homeless or reside in abandoned houses or overcrowded apartments, which are on many occasions sublet. This was confirmed by the study of Immigration Policy Lab, ETH Zurich, and UCL, commissioned by UNHCR and published in December 2023, according to which 44% of refugees were then homeless.1454 Return of beneficiaries of international protection to Greece According to Article 6 of the European Returns Directive (2008/115/EC), third country nationals who have been granted international protection status in Greece can be returned back to Greece when the authorities of another EU country become aware that this person, who is applying again for asylum in their territory, already holds a residence permit in Greece. As noted by RSA in March 2025, “[r]eturns of recognised refugees to Greece have intensified over the recent period, as European Union (EU) countries increasingly enforce return policies targeting beneficiaries of international protection. Notable examples include Germany’s push for the implementation of return schemes through pilot programmes and broader EU policy shifts”.1455 In 2023, 1451 1452 1453 1454 1455 Public Employment Service, "Cover" Program, available here. Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken, Report on the fact-finding mission concerning beneficiaries of international protection in Greece, 3 September 2024, p. 29. RSA and Stiftung Pro Asyl, Beneficiaries of international protection in Greece, Access to documents and socioeconomic rights, March 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/3Vy9DYJ, p. 25. ETH Zürich, ipl - immigration policy lab, UCL et al. (Author), published by ReliefWeb: Home for Good? Obstacles and Opportunities for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Greece, December 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/3UCwSl7. RSA, No support for refugees returned to Greece, 20 March 2025, available at: https://tinyurl.com/mhdzpdfz. 283