Accelerated examination procedure
1. Without prejudice to Article 21(2), the determining authority shall, in accordance with the basic principles and guarantees provided for in Chapter II, accelerate the examination on the merits of an application for international protection where:
(a)
the applicant, in lodging his or her application and presenting the facts, has only raised issues that are not relevant to the examination of whether he or she qualifies as a beneficiary of international protection in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2024/1347;
(b)
the applicant has made clearly inconsistent or contradictory or clearly false or obviously improbable representations or representations which contradict relevant and available country of origin information, thus making his or her claim clearly unconvincing as to whether he or she qualifies as a beneficiary of international protection in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2024/1347;
(c)
the applicant, after having been provided with the full opportunity to show good cause, is considered to have intentionally misled the authorities by presenting false information or documents or by withholding relevant information or documents, particularly with respect to his or her identity or nationality, that could have had a negative impact on the decision or there are clear grounds to consider that the applicant has, in bad faith, destroyed or disposed of an identity or travel document in order to prevent the establishment of his or her identity or nationality;
(d)
the applicant makes an application merely to delay, frustrate or prevent the enforcement of a decision for his or her removal from the territory of a Member State;
(e)
a third country may be considered to be a safe country of origin for the applicant within the meaning of this Regulation;
(f)
there are reasonable grounds to consider the applicant a danger to the national security or public order of the Member States or the applicant had been forcibly expelled for serious reasons of national security or public order under national law;
(g)
the application is a subsequent application which is not inadmissible;
(h)
the applicant entered the territory of a Member State unlawfully or prolonged his or her stay unlawfully and, without good reason, has either not presented himself or herself to the competent authorities or has not made an application for international protection as soon as possible, given the circumstances of his or her entry;
(i)
the applicant entered the territory of a Member State lawfully and, without good reason, has not made an application for international protection as soon as possible, given the grounds of his or her application; this point is without prejudice to the need of international protection arising sur place; or
(j)
the applicant is of a nationality or, in the case of stateless persons, a former habitual resident of a third country for which the proportion of decisions by the determining authority granting international protection is, according to the latest available yearly Union-wide average Eurostat data, 20 % or lower, unless the determining authority assesses that a significant change has occurred in the third country concerned since the publication of the relevant Eurostat data or that the applicant belongs to a category of persons for whom the proportion of 20 % or lower cannot be considered to be representative for their protection needs, taking into account, inter alia, the significant differences between first instance and final decisions.
Where the Asylum Agency has provided a guidance note on a country of origin in accordance with Article 11 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2303 showing that a significant change has occurred in the third country concerned since the publication of the relevant Eurostat data, Member States shall use that guidance note as a reference for the application of the first subparagraph, point (j), of this paragraph.
2. Where the determining authority considers that the examination of the application involves issues of fact or law that are too complex to be examined under an accelerated examination procedure, it may continue the examination on the merits in accordance with Article 35(4) and Article 39. In that case, the applicant concerned shall be informed of the change in the procedure.
3. The accelerated examination procedure may be applied to unaccompanied minors only where:
(a)
the applicant comes from a third country that may be considered to be a safe country of origin within the meaning of this Regulation;
(b)
there are reasonable grounds to consider the applicant as a danger to the national security or public order of the Member State or the applicant had been forcibly expelled for serious reasons of national security or public order under national law;
(c)
the application is a subsequent application which is not inadmissible;
(d)
the applicant, after having been provided with the full opportunity to show good cause, is considered to have intentionally misled the authorities by presenting false information or documents or by withholding relevant information or documents, particularly with respect to his or her identity or nationality, that could have had a negative impact on the decision or there are clear grounds to consider that the applicant has, in bad faith, destroyed or disposed of an identity or travel document in order to prevent the establishment of his or her identity or nationality; or
(e)
the applicant is of a nationality or, in the case of stateless persons, a former habitual resident of a third country for which the proportion of decisions granting international protection by the determining authority is, according to the latest available yearly Union-wide average Eurostat data, 20 % or lower, unless the determining authority assesses a significant change has occurred in the third country concerned since the publication of the relevant Eurostat data or that the applicant belongs to a category of persons for whom the proportion of 20 % or lower cannot be considered to be representative for their protection needs, taking into account, inter alia, significant differences between first instance and final decisions.
Where the Asylum Agency has provided a guidance note on a country of origin in accordance with Article 11 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2303 showing that a significant change has occurred in the third country concerned since the publication of the relevant Eurostat data, Member States shall use that guidance note as a reference for the application of the first subparagraph, point (e), of this paragraph.
Conditions for applying the asylum border procedure
1. Following the screening carried out in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2024/1356, where applicable and provided that the applicant has not yet been authorised to enter Member States’ territory, a Member State may, in accordance with the basic principles and guarantees of Chapter II, examine an application in a border procedure where that application has been made by a third-country national or stateless person who does not fulfil the conditions for entry to the territory of a Member State as set out in Article 6 of Regulation (EU) 2016/399. The border procedure may take place:
(a)
following an application made at an external border crossing point or in a transit zone;
(b)
following apprehension in connection with an unauthorised crossing of the external border;
(c)
following disembarkation in the territory of a Member State after a search and rescue operation;
(d)
following relocation in accordance with Article 67(11) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351.
2. Applicants subject to the border procedure shall not be authorised to enter the territory of a Member State, without prejudice to Article 51(2) and Article 53(2). Any measure taken by Member States to prevent unauthorised entry to their territory shall be in accordance with Directive (EU) 2024/1346.
3. By way of derogation from Article 51(2), first subparagraph, last sentence, the applicant shall not be authorised to enter the Member State’s territory where:
(a)
the applicant has no right to remain on the territory of a Member State in accordance with Article 10(4), point (a) or (c);
(b)
the applicant has no right to remain on the territory of a Member State in accordance with Article 68 and has not requested to be allowed to remain for the purposes of an appeal procedure within the applicable time limit;
(c)
the applicant has no right to remain on the territory of a Member State in accordance with Article 68 and a court or tribunal has decided that the applicant is not to be allowed to remain pending the outcome of an appeal procedure.
In the cases referred to in the first subparagraph of this paragraph, where the applicant has been subject to a return decision issued in accordance with the Directive 2008/115/EC or has been refused entry in accordance with Article 14 of Regulation (EU) 2016/399, Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1349 shall apply.
4. Without prejudice and complementary to the monitoring mechanism laid down in Article 14 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2303, each Member State shall provide for a monitoring of fundamental rights mechanism in relation to the border procedure that meets the criteria set out in Article 10 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1356.
Decisions in the framework of the asylum border procedure
1. Where a border procedure is applied, decisions may be taken on the following:
(a)
the inadmissibility of an application in accordance with Article 38;
(b)
the merits of an application where any of the circumstances referred to in Article 42(1), points (a) to (g) and (j), and Article 42(3), point (b), apply.
2. Where the number of applicants exceeds the number referred to in Article 47(1) and for the purpose of determining whom to subject to a border procedure pursuant to Article 42(1), point (c), (f) or (j), or Article 42(3), point (b), priority shall be given to the following categories of applications:
(a)
applications of certain third-country nationals or, in the case of stateless persons, of former habitual residents in a third country who, in the event of a negative decision, have a higher prospect of being returned, as applicable, to their country of origin, to their country of former habitual residence, to a safe third country or to a first country of asylum, within the meaning of this Regulation;
(b)
applications of certain third-country nationals or, in the case of stateless persons, of former habitual residents in a third country who are considered, on serious grounds, to pose a danger to the national security or public order of a Member State;
(c)
without prejudice to point (b), applications of certain third-country nationals or, in the case of stateless persons, of former habitual residents in a third country who are not minors and their family members.
3. Where the border procedure is applied to minors and their family members, priority shall be given to the examination of their applications.
Member States may also give priority to the examination of applications of certain third-country nationals or, in the case of stateless persons, of former habitual residents in a third country who, in the event of a negative decision, have a higher prospect of being returned, as applicable, to their country of origin, to their country of former habitual residence, to a safe third country or to a first country of asylum, within the meaning of this Regulation.
Mandatory application of the asylum border procedure
1. A Member State shall examine an application in a border procedure in the cases referred to in Article 43(1) where any of the circumstances referred to in Article 42(1), point (c), (f) or (j), apply.
2. Where the circumstances referred to in Article 42(1), point (f), apply and without prejudice to Article 54, Member States shall take appropriate measures to maintain as far as possible family unity in the border procedure.
3. For the purposes of paragraph 2, in order to maintain family unity, ‘members of that applicant’s family’ shall be understood as meaning, in so far as the family already existed before the applicant arrived on the territory of the Member States, the following members of the applicant’s family who are present on the territory of the same Member State in relation to the application for international protection:
(a)
the spouse of the applicant or his or her unmarried partner in a stable relationship, where the law or practice of the Member State concerned treats unmarried couples as equivalent to married couples;
(b)
the minor children of couples as referred to in point (a) or of the applicant, on condition that they are unmarried and regardless of whether they were born in or out of wedlock or adopted as defined under national law;
(c)
where the applicant is a minor and unmarried, the father, mother or another adult responsible for the applicant, whether by the law or practice of the Member State in which the adult is present;
(d)
where the applicant is a minor and unmarried, the sibling or siblings of the applicant, provided they are unmarried and minors.
For the purposes of points (b), (c) and (d) of the first subparagraph, on the basis of an individual assessment, a minor shall be considered unmarried if his or her marriage could not be contracted in accordance with the national law of the Member State concerned, in particular having regard to the legal age of marriage.
4. Where, on the basis of information obtained in the framework of monitoring carried out pursuant to Articles 14 and 15 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2303, the Commission has grounds to consider that a Member State is not complying with the requirements laid down in Article 54(2), it shall recommend, without delay, the suspension of the application of the border procedure to families with minors pursuant to Article 53(2), point (b). The Commission shall make that recommendation public.
The Member State concerned shall take utmost account of the Commission’s recommendation with respect to its obligations under Article 53(2), point (b), and with a view to addressing any shortcomings identified to ensure full compliance with the requirements of Article 54(2). The Member State concerned shall inform the Commission of the measures taken to give effect to the recommendation.
The adequate capacity at Union level
The adequate capacity at Union level shall be considered to be 30 000.
The adequate capacity of a Member State
1. The Commission shall, by means of implementing acts, calculate the number that corresponds to the adequate capacity of each Member State by using the formula laid down in paragraph 4.
Without prejudice to paragraph 3, the Commission shall also, by means of implementing acts, set the maximum number of applications a Member State is required to examine in the border procedure per year. That maximum number shall be two times the number obtained by using the formula laid down in paragraph 4 from 12 June 2026, three times the number obtained by using the formula laid down in paragraph 4 from 13 June 2027 and four times the number obtained by using the formula laid down in paragraph 4 from 13 June 2028.
2. Where a Member State’s adequate capacity as referred to in the first subparagraph of paragraph 1 is reached, that Member State shall no longer be required to carry out border procedures in the cases referred to in Article 43(1) where the circumstances referred to in Article 42(1), point (j), apply.
3. Where a Member State has examined the maximum number of applications referred to in the second subparagraph of paragraph 1, that Member State shall no longer be required to carry out border procedures in the cases referred to in Article 43(1) where the circumstances referred to in Article 42(1), point (c) or (j), apply. The Member State shall nevertheless continue to examine in the border procedure applications of third-country nationals to whom the circumstances referred to in Article 42(1), point (f), and Article 42(3), point (b), apply.
4. The number referred to in the first subparagraph of paragraph 1 shall be calculated by multiplying the number set out in Article 46 by the sum of irregular crossings of the external border, arrivals following search and rescue operations and refusals of entry at the external border in the Member State concerned during the previous three years and dividing the result thereby obtained by the sum of irregular crossings of the external border, arrivals following search and rescue operations and refusals of entry at the external border in the Union as a whole during the same period according to the latest available Frontex and Eurostat data.
5. The first such implementing act as referred to in paragraph 1 shall be adopted by the Commission on 12 August 2024 and on 15 October every three years thereafter.
Following the adoption by the Commission of an implementing act as referred to in paragraph 1, each Member State shall ensure, within six months of the adoption of the second and all subsequent such implementing acts, that it has the adequate capacity set out in that implementing act in place. For the purposes of the first such implementing act, Member States shall ensure they have the adequate capacity set out in that implementing act in place before 12 June 2026.
Measure applicable where the adequate capacity of a Member State is reached
1. When the number of applicants that are subject to the asylum border procedure in a Member State at any given moment, in combination with the number of persons subject to a return border procedure established pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2024/1349 or, where applicable, an equivalent return border procedure established under national law, is equal to or exceeds the number set out in respect of that Member State in the Commission implementing act referred to in Article 47(1), first subparagraph, that Member State may notify the Commission of the fact.
2. Where a Member State notifies the Commission in accordance with paragraph 1, by way of derogation from Article 45(1), that Member State is not required to examine in a border procedure applications made by applicants as referred to in Article 42(1), point (j), at the moment when the number of applicants that are subject to the border procedure in that Member State is equal to or exceeds the number referred to in Article 47(1), first subparagraph.
3. The measure provided for in paragraph 2 shall be applied on an inflow-outflow basis and the Member State concerned shall be required to continue examining in a border procedure applications made by applicants as referred to in Article 42(1), point (j), as soon as the number of applicants that are subject to the border procedure in that Member State at any given moment is lower than the number referred to in Article 47(1), first subparagraph.
4. The measure provided for in paragraph 2 may be applied by a Member State for the remainder of the same calendar year starting from the day following the date of the notification under paragraph 1.
Notification by a Member State where the adequate capacity is reached
1. The notification referred to in Article 48 shall contain the following information:
(a)
the number of applicants that are subject to the asylum border procedure, a return border procedure established pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2024/1349 or, where applicable, an equivalent return border procedure established under national law in the Member State concerned at the time of the notification;
(b)
the measure referred to in Article 48 that the Member State concerned intends to apply or to continue applying;
(c)
a substantiated reasoning in support of the intention of the Member State concerned, describing how resorting to the measure in question could help in addressing the situation and, where applicable, other measures that the Member State concerned has adopted or envisages adopting at national level to alleviate the situation, including those referred to in Article 6(3) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351
2. Member States may notify the Commission in accordance with Article 48 of this Regulation as part of the notification referred to in Articles 58 and 59 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351, where applicable.
3. Where a Member State notifies the Commission in accordance with Article 48, the Member State concerned shall inform other Member States accordingly.
4. A Member State applying the measure referred to in Article 48 shall inform the Commission on a monthly basis about the following elements:
(a)
the number of applicants that are subject to the border procedure in that Member State at that time;
(b)
the inflow-outflow evolution of the number of persons that are subject to border procedures for each week that month;
(c)
the number of staff responsible for examining applications in the border procedure;
(d)
the average duration of the examination during the administrative stage of the procedure; and
(e)
the average duration of the examination by a court or tribunal of a request to be allowed to remain pending the appeal.
The Commission shall monitor the application of the measure referred to in Article 48 of this Regulation and to that effect review the information provided by Member States. The Commission shall, within the report referred to in Article 9 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351, provide an assessment of the application of the measure referred to in Article 48 of this Regulation in every Member State.
Notification by a Member State where the annual maximum number of applications is reached
Where the number of applications that have been examined in the border procedure in a Member State within one calendar year is equal to or exceeds the maximum number of applications set out in respect of that Member State in the implementing act referred to in Article 47(1), that Member State may notify the Commission accordingly.
Where the Member State has notified the Commission in accordance with the first paragraph of this Article, the Commission shall promptly examine the information provided by the Member State concerned in order to verify that the Member State concerned has examined in the border procedure since the beginning of the calendar year a number of applications that is equal to or exceeds the number set out in respect of that Member State in the implementing act referred to in Article 47(1).
On completion of the verification, the Commission shall authorise, by means of an implementing act, the Member State concerned to not examine in the border procedure applications made by applicants as referred to in Article 42(1), points (c) and (j).
Such an authorisation shall not exempt the Member State from the obligation to examine in the border procedure applications made by applicants as referred to in Article 42(1), point (f), and Article 42(5), point (b).
Deadlines
1. By way of derogation from Article 28 of this Regulation, applications subject to a border procedure shall be lodged no later than five days from registration for the first time or, following a transfer pursuant to Article 67(11) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351, five days from when the applicant arrives in the Member State of relocation following such a transfer provided that the applicant is given an effective opportunity to do so. Failure to comply with the deadline of five days shall not affect the continued application of the border procedure.
2. The border procedure shall be as short as possible while at the same time enabling a complete and fair examination of the claims. Without prejudice to the third subparagraph of this paragraph, the maximum duration of the border procedure shall be 12 weeks from when the application is registered until the applicant no longer has a right to remain and is not allowed to remain. Following that period, the applicant shall be authorised to enter the Member State’s territory except where Article 4 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1349 applies.
Member States shall lay down provisions on the duration of the examination procedure, by way of derogation from Article 35, of the examination by a court or tribunal of a request to remain lodged in accordance with Article 68(4) and (5) and, where applicable, of the appeal procedure. The duration laid down shall ensure that all those procedural steps are finalised within 12 weeks from when the application is registered.
The 12-week period may be extended to 16 weeks if the Member State to which the person is transferred pursuant to Article 67(11) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351 is applying the border procedure.
Determination of Member State responsible and relocation
1. Where the conditions for the border procedure apply, Member States shall decide to carry out the procedure for determining the Member State responsible for examining the application as laid down in Regulation (EU) 2024/1351 at the locations at which the border procedure will be carried out, without prejudice to the deadlines established in Article 51(2) of this Regulation.
2. Where the conditions for applying the border procedure are met in the Member State from which the applicant is transferred, a border procedure may be applied by the Member State to which the applicant is transferred in accordance with Article 67(11) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351, without prejudice to the deadlines established in Article 51(2) of this Regulation.
Exceptions to the asylum border procedure
1. The border procedure shall be applied to unaccompanied minors only in the circumstances referred to in Article 42(3), point (b). Where there is doubt as to the applicant’s age, the competent authorities shall promptly carry out an age assessment in accordance with Article 25.
2. Member States shall not apply or shall cease to apply the border procedure at any stage of the procedure where:
(a)
the determining authority considers that the grounds for rejecting an application as inadmissible or for applying the accelerated examination procedure are not applicable or no longer applicable;
(b)
the necessary support cannot be provided to applicants with special reception needs, including minors, in accordance with Chapter IV of Directive (EU) 2024/1346, at the locations referred to in Article 54;
(c)
the necessary support cannot be provided to applicants in need of special procedural guarantees at the locations referred to in Article 54;
(d)
there are relevant medical reasons for not applying the border procedure, including mental health reasons;
(e)
the guarantees and conditions for detention laid down in Articles 10 to 13 of Directive (EU) 2024/1346 are not met or no longer met and the border procedure cannot be applied to the applicant without the use of detention.
In the cases set out in the first subparagraph of this paragraph, the competent authority shall authorise the applicant to enter the territory of the Member State and apply the appropriate procedure provided for in Chapter III.
Locations for carrying out the asylum border procedure
1. During the examination of applications subject to a border procedure, a Member State shall require, pursuant to Article 9 of Directive (EU) 2024/1346 and without prejudice to Article 10 thereof, the applicants to reside at or in proximity to the external border or transit zones as a general rule or in other designated locations within its territory, fully taking into account the specific geographical circumstances of that Member State.
2. Without prejudice to Article 47, Member States shall ensure that families with minors reside in reception facilities appropriate to their needs after assessing the best interests of the child, and shall ensure a standard of living adequate for the minor’s physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social development, in full respect of the requirements of Chapter IV of Directive (EU) 2024/1346.
3. Each Member State shall notify the Commission, by 11 April 2026, the locations at which the border procedure will be carried out, including when applying Article 45. Member States shall ensure that the capacity of those locations is sufficient to examine the applications covered by Article 45. Any changes in the identification of the locations at which the border procedure is carried out shall be notified to the Commission within two months of the changes having taken place.
4. The requirement to reside at a particular place in accordance with paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 shall not be regarded as authorisation to enter into and stay on the territory of a Member State.
5. Where an applicant subject to the border procedure needs to be transferred to the determining authority or to a competent court or tribunal of first instance for the purposes of such a procedure, or transferred for the purpose of receiving medical treatment, such travel shall not in itself constitute an entry into the territory of a Member State.
Subsequent applications
1. An application made where a final decision on a previous application by the same applicant has not yet been taken shall be considered to be a further representation and not a new application.
That further representation shall be examined in the Member State responsible in the framework of the ongoing examination in the administrative procedure or in the framework of any ongoing appeal procedure in so far as the competent court or tribunal may take into account the elements underlying the further representation.
2. Any further application made in any Member State after a final decision has been taken on a previous application by the same applicant shall be considered to be a subsequent application and shall be examined by the Member State responsible.
3. A subsequent application shall be subject to a preliminary examination in which the determining authority shall establish whether new elements have arisen or have been presented by the applicant and which:
(a)
significantly increase the likelihood of the applicant to qualify as a beneficiary of international protection in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2024/1347; or
(b)
relate to an inadmissibility ground previously applied, where the previous application was rejected as inadmissible.
4. The preliminary examination shall be carried out on the basis of written submissions or a personal interview in accordance with the basic principles and guarantees provided for in Chapter II. In particular, the personal interview may be dispensed with in those instances where, from the written submissions, it is clear that the application does not give rise to new elements as referred to in paragraph 3.
5. The elements presented by the applicant shall be considered to be new only where the applicant was unable, through no fault on his or her own part, to present those elements in the context of the earlier application. Any elements which could have been presented earlier by the applicant need not be taken into account unless they significantly increase the likelihood of the application not being inadmissible or of the applicant qualifying for international protection or if a previous application was rejected as implicitly withdrawn in accordance with Article 41 without an examination on the merits.
6. Where new elements as referred to in paragraph 3 have been presented by the applicant or have arisen, the application shall be further examined on its merits, unless the application may be considered to be inadmissible on the basis of another ground provided for in Article 38(1).
7. Where no new elements as referred to in paragraph 3 have been presented by the applicant or have arisen, the application shall be rejected as inadmissible pursuant to Article 38(2).
Exception from the right to remain in subsequent applications
Without prejudice to the principle of non-refoulement, Member States may provide for an exception to the right to remain on their territory and derogate from Article 68(5), point (d), where:
(a)
a first subsequent application has been lodged, merely in order to delay or frustrate the enforcement of a decision which would result in the applicant’s imminent removal from that Member State and is not further examined pursuant to Article 55(7); or
(b)
a second or further subsequent application is made in any Member State following a final decision rejecting a previous subsequent application as inadmissible or unfounded or manifestly unfounded.
Source: EUR-Lex (Publications Office of the EU), © European Union, reuse permitted under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU.
