On Monday 20 October, EU Member States experts will continue their work on proposed amendments to the regulation on asylum procedures concerning the concepts of ‘third country of origin’ (TCO) and ‘safe country of origin’ (SCO) based on new proposals from the Danish Presidency of the EU Council (see EUROPE 13720/17).
The two texts aim respectively to speed up the examination - and rejection - of an asylum application, if applicants are from a third country considered to pose no risk to their lives, or if they have transited through a third country considered sufficiently safe - even if they aren’t nationals of that country - to also process their application for protection. Member States may also enter into agreements with ‘safe third countries’ to take back those seeking asylum in the EU who have not transited through their territory.
Dated 14 October, the new proposals, for the ‘SCO’ text, make only minor changes to the process that allows the Commission to change the status of third countries and give even greater weight to the voice of the Member States by strengthening the Commission’s obligations to consult them in advance.
For STC, these are additional clarifications on how Member States must inform their European partners about the agreements/arrangements they enter into with the third countries concerned.
For the ‘SCO’ text, the added language states that “in view of the potential implications for the external relations of the Union and the Member States, the Commission should not inform the Member States and the Council of the fact that there exists a serious threat by reason of indiscriminate violence in a situation of international or internal armed conflict in an EU candidate country without the prior approval of the Council”.
Similarly, when the Commission “assess[es] and subsequently inform[s] the Council and the Member States that there is no longer a serious threat to a civilian’s life or person by reason of indiscriminate violence in situations of international or internal armed conflict in that country, the Commission should be able to take into account the fact that the European Council or the Council has acknowledged that the relevant circumstances have ceased to exist”.
Safe third countries. The document adds security for minors with a reference to the principle of family unity. Member States have already agreed that, given the vulnerability of unaccompanied minors, the concept of ‘safe third country’ should only apply to unaccompanied minors where a connection or transit with the third country concerned can be established (it would not be possible to transfer them under a bilateral agreement). Member States should ensure that the child’s best interests are a primary consideration in all decisions concerning minors. “In assessing the best interests of the child, Member States should take due account of the principle of family unity”, the text adds.
A high degree of transparency regarding agreements or arrangements between Member States and third countries would aim to ensure compliance with this regulation, the Presidency also adds.
Further information: https://aeur.eu/f/j0q ; https://aeur.eu/f/j0r (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)