Fast-Track Border Procedure
If you arrived on the Greek Islands of Lesvos, Chios, Samos, Leros or Kos on or after March 20, 2016, you will likely have to go through a special process called the Fast-Track Border Procedure.
This is because of an agreement known as the EU-Turkey Statement.
The procedure is the next step after the Reception and Identification Procedure and the Full Registration of your Asylum Request.
Under the Fast-Track Border Procedure, the asylum process should take no more than 2 weeks.
Two groups of people are not supposed to go through the Fast-Track Border Procedure:
- People who the Reception and Identification Service identifies as members of vulnerable groups
- People eligible for Family Reunification
These groups are supposed to go through the regular procedure instead. But occasionally, in practice, people from these groups enter the Fast-Track Border Procedure anyway.
Interviews
When the Greek Asylum Service officially registers your asylum request, you will have a personal interview. Either staff of the Greek Asylum Service or the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) will conduct this interview. EASO supports the Greek Asylum Service and can only issue an opinion on your case and not a final decision.
Which type of interview you have at this stage will depend on:
- Your country of origin
- What your legal status was in Turkey or elsewhere
- Whether you have close family elsewhere in Europe
- Whether you may be classed as vulnerable
Admissibility interview
Many people undergoing the Fast-Track Border Procedure have an admissibility interview.
You will likely have an admissibility interview if:
- You are from a country with a high recognition rate of asylum across the European Union (over 25%, i.e., Syrians, Palestinians, Afghans, Iraqis and Iranians)
- You are not classed as vulnerable
- You are not eligible for Family Reunification
During this interview, authorities decide whether your asylum claim should be examined in Greece or if you will be readmitted to Turkey.
Your interviewer will ask you what happened to you during your stay in Turkey. The purpose of this process is to examine whether Turkey is a safe country for you to return to. If you have any arguments that Turkey is not a safe country for you, it is important to describe them in detail at this point.
What’s next?
If the authorities find your claim inadmissible, you have 15 days to appeal after the decision is announced. Learn more:
APPEALING YOUR ASYLUM DECISION
If the authorities find your claim is admissible, you will have a second interview.
Eligibility interview
If you do not have an admissibility interview, or if you have one and authorities find your asylum claim should be examined in Greece, you will have an "eligibility interview." This is the main asylum interview and will decide if you can get asylum in Greece. T
During this interview, authorities will ask what happened to you back in your country that forced you to leave. They will then decide if you are eligible for asylum in Greece.
Learn more about asylum interviews in Greece:
After your eligibility interview, if you get a negative response, you must appeal within 5 days.
Learn more about appealing your decision:
APPEALING YOUR ASYLUM DECISION
If you get a positive response, congratulations — you can learn more about your asylum status in Greece here: