Greece – Legal and Policy Framework of Migration Governance

This report intends to present the current situation regarding migration and asylum policy in Greece since 2015. One of the main conclusions is that Greece continues to be a country of main entry in the EU having at the same time a permanent refugee population. More precisely, report contains a presentation of the most up to date data concerning (a) arrivals of non EU citizens at the land and sea Greek borders mainly for the period 2011-2017, (b) asylum applications and decisions by country of origin, sex and age groups, (c) reception and accommodation centres (d) numbers of rejection and return to Turkey and (e) the latest numbers of migrants in Greece. The sources of data are mainly from governmental authorities such as the Asylum Service and international organizations and national nongovernmental organizations such as the UNHCR, GCR and most of them are open and available on the internet. It contains a brief history of migration and border policies in Greece particularly since 1990s, highlights the main dimensions of socioeconomic situation particularly during the recession and underlines the most important features of political situation in Greece since the beginning of the economic crisis. It presents the most important laws and presidential decrees concerning migration and asylum and describes the prevailing principles and goals of the legal framework and migration management. This report mentions different statuses and their rights and duties, procedures of reception, protection and different forms of granting protection. It presents the structure of the reception system and the responsible national authorities, NGOs and international organizations. It points out detention policies in pre-removal centres concerning non-EU nationals and asylum seekers. It includes a presentation of the integration measures for women and vulnerable groups.