Legal advice for asylum seekers
The legal advice for asylum seekers is an advice on legal issues for asylum seekers under a national asylum procedure.
Individual states
In Germany, legal advice for asylum seekers is subject to the Legal Services Act . In 2015, the title of specialist lawyer for migration law was introduced.
For reasons of capacity, the UNHCR does not offer refugees and asylum seekers in Germany individual support or advice. For individual advice and support, refugees and asylum seekers in Germany are primarily available at the non-governmental advice centers of the welfare and church associations, for example the Caritas Association , the Arbeiterwohlfahrt , the German Red Cross or the Diakonisches Werk . Lawyers working with charities and the UNHCR are organized in the Legal Advisers Conference.
Free legal advice in general is regulated in Germany by Section 6 of the Legal Services Act. Free legal services according to § 6 Abs. 1 RDG are possible within the framework of family, neighborly or similarly close personal relationships; Outside of this narrow personal circle, free legal advice is only permitted under the guidance of a person qualified to be a judge (Section 6 (2) RDG). Student legal advice in Germany is carried out on this basis . Asylum seekers are also often advised by law students as part of university training and advisory projects ( see: Refugee Law Clinic ). The Federal Government Commissioner for Migration, Refugees and Integration Aydan Özoğuz is the patron of three such projects.
Following the resolution of the Legal Services Act, Amnesty International had emphasized with regard to free counseling for migrants and refugees that refugee counseling centers now require a fully qualified lawyer to ensure the quality of the counseling, but that in return the legality of the counseling is no longer in question and the counseling in particular quality will continue to improve through the regularly required training courses.
In Austria, too, legal advice for asylum seekers is offered by non-governmental advice centers of the welfare and church associations.
In Switzerland, penniless asylum seekers receive free legal advice. Asylum applications from applicants from safe countries of origin are processed in a fast-track process within 48 hours (as of 2015). It is an institutionalized legal advice which is provided by independent associations.
Asylum seekers also receive free legal advice in the Netherlands. The media put the right to free legal advice in connection with faster processing times: In the Netherlands, for example, the majority of asylum procedures are decided within a period of one week to two months (as of 2015).
European Union
The Regulation (EU) no. 604/2013 (Dublin III) regulates in Article 27, the appeal against a decision on a transfer to another EU Member State. This article provides that Member States must ensure that the person concerned can obtain legal advice and, if necessary, linguistic assistance in this regard. Legal advice includes, in particular, the preparation of the necessary procedural documents and representation before courts. Member States may provide restrictive provisions so that applicants do not receive any more favorable treatment in this regard than nationals who take advantage of general legal advice. The free legal advice can also be withheld if the remedy or the review are not given any tangible chances of success.
The Directive 2013/33 / EU (Reception Directive) sets standards for the reception of those international protection apply firmly. In Article 5, it stipulates that the Member States shall ensure that applicants receive information on which organizations or groups of people are providing relevant legal advice.
The Directive 2013/32 / EU (Asylum Procedures Directive) regulates the common procedures for granting and withdrawing international protection. In sections 22 and 23 of the "Reasons" it says:
- (22) It is [..] in the interests of the Member States, like the applicant, that the need for international protection is properly identified at the first instance. For this purpose, the applicants in the first instance should be informed free of charge about the legal situation and the procedure, taking into account the special circumstances of their case. This information should, among other things, help applicants to better understand the process and thus help them to fulfill their obligations. It would be disproportionate to require Member States to provide this information only through knowledgeable lawyers. Member States should therefore be able to use the most appropriate means to provide such information, for example through non-governmental organizations or specialist staff from public authorities or specialized government bodies.
- (23) Applicants should receive legal advice and representation free of charge in appeals proceedings under certain conditions from persons who are qualified to do so under national law. In addition, applicants should be able to consult a lawyer or other legal adviser authorized or permitted under national law at their own expense at all stages of the procedure .
Article 8 of the Directive provides that Member States must ensure "that organizations and persons providing advisory services to applicants have effective access to applicants at external border crossing points, including transit zones ". Article 12 provides that applicants must not be prevented from contacting the UNHCR or any other organization that provides legal advice or other advisory services to applicants under the law of the Member State concerned and lays down further rules for informing legal advisers . Article 19 regulates the free provision of legal and procedural information in first instance proceedings. Articles 20 and 21 define comprehensive rules and requirements for free legal advice and representation in appeal proceedings. Article 22 stipulates that applicants must have the opportunity at all stages of the procedure to consult a lawyer or other legal adviser approved or authorized under national law at their own expense. Article 23 regulates the scope of legal advice, including access to information in the applicant's file. The Member States are thus empowered to lay down rules for the presence of a lawyer or other legal adviser at all hearings in the context of the procedure. Article 46 establishes a right to an effective remedy.
According to plans by the European Commission (as of July 2016), the EU-wide rules for asylum seekers are to be tightened and standardized; In return, asylum seekers are allowed to work in all Member States no later than six months after submitting their application and are entitled to free legal assistance.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Legal advice and help. (No longer available online.) UNHCR, archived from the original on July 16, 2016 ; accessed on July 16, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ More legal advice for refugees. (No longer available online.) In: Press release. The federal government, archived from the original on July 16, 2016 ; accessed on July 16, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Julia Duchrow Asyplolitik: opinion on the new Legal Services Act. (No longer available online.) Amnesty International, archived from the original on July 16, 2016 ; accessed on July 16, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Franz Drey: Asylum applications in Switzerland: 60 percent in 140 days too modest. (No longer available online.) Authorities Spiegel Online, 2016, archived from the original on July 16, 2016 ; accessed on July 16, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Andrea Dernbach: Refugees in Germany: traffic jam in processing - and little recognized asylum applications. July 29, 2015, accessed July 16, 2016 .
- ↑ CSU paper on asylum policy: Dispute over faster asylum procedures: What we can learn from the Swiss. Focus, January 3, 2015, accessed July 16, 2016 .
- ↑ Andrea Dernbach: Refugees in Germany: traffic jam in processing - and little recognized asylum applications. July 29, 2015, accessed July 16, 2016 .
- ↑ EU Commission wants to tighten rules for asylum seekers. (No longer available online.) Donaukurier, July 13, 2016, archived from the original on July 16, 2016 ; accessed on July 16, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
