Author
Legislative framework
Access to the labour market is the means for applicants and beneficiaries of international protection to integrate into the host society, regain their autonomy and self-esteem and feel empowered.
Article 57 of the Asylum Code, as amended by L. 5078/2023 (Article 192), provides that applicants have a right to access the labour market within sixty (60) days of the lodging of their application and the receipt of the relevant legal documents, as long as no first instance decision has been taken by the Asylum Service, and the delay cannot be attributed to the applicant.[1]
This amendment, minimising waiting time to access Greek labour market from 6 months to 2 months, comes at a time of significant shortages in Greece’s labour market and was part of new legislation that also introduced the possibility of undocumented third country nationals to regularise their status, inter alia subject to being able to present a job offer. The amendment has been welcomed by UN Agencies as a step forward, with the potential for bringing positive results for both third country nationals and locals. As noted by the Representative of UNHCR in Greece:[2]
These measures are a step in the right direction. They respond in a pragmatic manner to workforce needs in Greece’s productive sectors that remain unfulfilled and promptly puts asylum-applicants on the path to self-reliance and inclusion, which in the end will yield significant socio-economic returns for all […] The amendment is a positive example of political will to dismantle barriers that render people invisible and marginalised, contributing to the broader prosperity of the Greek economy and society.
As long as they hold a valid asylum applicant card, Article 57(2) Asylum Code provides them access to paid employment or the provision of services or work throughout the period of validity of the card. Applicants are also under an obligation to inform the competent reception authority of any professional activity they engage in (commencement of a profession, contract of employment), and submit relevant documentation. Failure to comply with this obligation can lead to the reduction or withdrawal of material reception conditions in accordance with Article 61 Asylum Code.[3] Lastly, the right is automatically withdrawn upon issuance of a negative decision which is not subject to an automatically suspensive effect, and applicants lack the right to stay on the Greek territory.[4]
All the above are interlinked with access of the asylum applicants and beneficiaries of international protection to public social insurance coverage. A legislative change in late 2023 introduced a – in many cases unsurmountable – challenge for asylum applicants in Greece. By virtue of Joint Ministerial Decision no. Φ80320/109864/14.12.2023, the activation of the social security number (AMKA) for adult beneficiaries of international protection, requires, as proof of residence, a certificate of employment, an employment contract or a commencement of work, uploaded in the ERGANI system,[5] in addition to the already existing obligation to prove one’s residence by a lease contract or a solemn declaration of a third person hosting the asylum seeker.
The above regulation raises concerns regarding the treatment of beneficiaries of international protection and the safeguarding of their social rights that have been collectively addressed by CSOs in Greece to the competent Ministries.[6] In so far as it establishes a differential approach vis-à-vis beneficiaries, compared to nationals –which is also in breach of Articles 29 and 30 Asylum Code– it also introduces an additional layer to be considered under relevant infringement proceedings triggered by the European Commission in January 2023[7], whose outcome remains yet unknown.
Obstacles in practice
Data collected through an ongoing survey conducted under the coordination of UNHCR, between February 2022 and March 2024,[8] helps provide some further contextualisation to the challenges faced by asylum seekers in order to effectively access and remain in the Greek labour market. Namely, based on a total of 107 surveys carried out during the reference period with the participation of households in the asylum procedure or pending registration (fully registered, pre-registered and unregistered while willing to apply for asylum), the vast majority of respondents (80%) were either not working (63%), in most cases during the 12-month period preceding their participation to the survey, or were only able to find occasional work (17%). Moreover, of those working on a regular (20%) or occasional (17%) basis, the majority (56%) were doing so without any type of legal contract, indicating significant levels of labour exploitation. Lack of knowledge of the language, lack of documentation and the inability to find legal employment were noted as the main three challenges with respect to finding work in Greece, followed by the lack of knowledge on how to find employment and the lack of day care for the children, which to GCR’s experience particularly affects single parent households with a female head. Discrimination/racism was also noted as a hindering factor in 5 out of 107 cases, while in only 2 cases did respondents state they did not wish to find work in Greece at the time.
A December 2023 study commissioned by UNHCR, as part of which more than 3,700 applicants and beneficiaries of international protection were surveyed between May-July 2022, seems to further corroborate this data. Namely, as per the study’s findings,[9] of the total participants of the survey, 64% were not working in the 4 weeks preceding their participation to the survey, even though more than half (52%) were actively looking for work. Of the rest of those not working, slightly more than 1 in 10 (11%) stated they had been doing unpaid work, 9% that they were unable to work on account of sickness or disability and close to 1 in 4 (24%) were at the time not looking for a job. The study also identified a gender-based gap vis-a-vis access to employment, with women being affected to a significantly higher degree than men (women unemployment stood at 82%, as opposed to 54% for men). Interestingly, no significant difference vis-à-vis employment was found based on respondents’ legal status, with unemployment affecting to near similar extents applicants (66%) and beneficiaries (62%) of international protection. By contrast, the correlation between the type of accommodation and employment was much more pronounced, with applicants and beneficiaries who were self-accommodated displaying significantly higher degrees of access to employment (68%) compared to those residing in the former ESTIA scheme or supported through the Helios project (16%) and even more so compared to those residing in camps (10%). This seems to re-affirm persisting challenges in accessing the labour market for applicants residing in mainland camps, on account of the secluded nature of their accommodation and prolonged displacement, reported in previous years.[10]
High levels of exploitation/undocumented labour were also found by the study, with only 36% of working applicants (and 48% of beneficiaries), being able to do so with a formal contract, while in all cases of those working, wages were identified as being much lower than the Greek national minimum wage, even though weekly working hours were in 41% of cases similar to average working hours for Greek nationals and in 22% of cases more (60-hour working weeks). A third of participants (31% in the case of men and 33% in the case of women) also reported feeling discriminated against in the labour market, while a very high percentage of all participants (68%) reported having to resort to negative coping mechanisms, such as skipping meals, on account of economic hardships.[11]
In another research conducted by GCR, IRC, and Diotima between November in spring 2022 with more than 180 respondents, lack of Greek and/or English courses, the lack of a social network and connection with the Greek labour market, insufficient information on the relevant procedures, obstacles in recognising their qualifications and skills, prolonged displacement, secluded accommodation, or restriction of movement imposed, delays in access to the asylum system on mainland Greece, and racism and discrimination, were among the main issues reported.[12] The same pattern prevails in more recent research,[13] as significant challenges, including labour rights violations, vulnerabilities linked to precarious insecure legal statuses, and systemic barriers to formal employment are still present, with 30% of respondents engaged in undeclared work, predominantly in sectors like construction and domestic work.
Based on the same survey, whose findings are corroborated by the UNHCR Inter agency Protection Monitoring Tool in Greece,[14] the main obstacle in finding employment for both applicants and beneficiaries of international protection was correlated with the lack of opportunities to skill up competences and learn Greek. According to the social service of GCR there is a significant gap in Greek language programs for applicants and beneficiaries of international protection, which is covered, as far as possible, free of charge by non-governmental organisations. Adding to this, there are no practically accessible workshops or on-the-job trainings by the Greek Public Employment Service (DYPA[15]), which further limits applicants’ prospects of acquiring employment in Greece.
The sole exception has been the HELIOS programme (see the relevant section on Content of International Protection – Housing),[16] which however focuses on beneficiaries of international protection, providing integration courses, including 280 hours of the Greek language. Also, according to the data provided by UNHCR, the primary problem in accessing the labour market identified by the respondents-asylum applicants (61, i.e., 76%) is Greek language competence.[17]
When it comes to opportunities for vocational training, both Articles 17(1) L 4540/2018 and Article 58 (1) Asylum Code provide that applicants can access vocational training programmes under the same conditions and prerequisites as foreseen for Greek nationals. However, the law does not take into consideration the significantly different circumstances faced by asylum applicants, and in particular, the fact that they may not be in a position to provide the necessary documentation (e.g., certificate of completion of primary school).[18] Article 58 (2) Asylum Code provides that the conditions for assessing the skills of applicants who do not have the necessary documentation will be set by a Joint Ministerial Decision of the Ministers of Labour and Social Affairs, Education and Religious Affairs and Migration and Asylum. As far as GCR is aware such a decision had not been issued by the end of 2025.
As in previous years,[19] asylum applicants have also continued facing obstacles in opening bank accounts in 2025. For context, based on data collected through the abovementioned ongoing survey conducted under the coordination of UNHCR, as part of which 107 asylum applicant households (fully registered, pre-registered and unregistered while willing to apply for asylum) were reached between February 2022 and March 2024, 62% of respondents did not have a bank account, with main causes relating to procedural challenges, including, in 10 out of 107 cases, their request being declined, though in 16 out of 107 cases respondents stated they did not wish or need a bank account.[20] On the other hand, based on the same survey, issuance of a VAT verification number (AFM) seems to have been somewhat streamlined in recent years, with 87% of applicants stating they had been able to obtain said number, even though 35% of respondents reported that they required support in order to be able to issue it.
[1] Article 57(1) Asylum Code, as amended by Article 192 L. 5078/2023.
[2] UNHCR & IOM, UNHCR and IOM welcome new amendment facilitating access to labour for migrants and asylum-seekers, 19 December 2023, available at: https://tinyurl.com/39m8xwtk.
[3] Article 57(4) Asylum Code.
[4] Article 57(3) Asylum Code.
[5] Joint Ministerial Decision no. Φ80320/109864/14.12.2023 of the Ministers of National Economy and Finance, Foreign Affairs, National Defense, Interior, Health, Labour and Social Security, Citizen Protection, Immigration and Asylum, Maritime and Island Policy and Digital Governance regarding the conditions and the procedure for the issuance, activation, deactivation and inactivation of the Social Security Number (AMKA), for the activation of the AMKA for adult beneficiaries of international protection, Article 6 par. 5b, available in Greek here.
[6] A letter sent on 15 July 2024 by NGOs participating at the Legal Aid Working Group is in GCR’s files and available upon request
[7] GovWatch EU Commissioner Johansson: Greece violates EU law on refugees On 26 January 2023, Commissioner Johansson sent two letters to the Greek government launching infringement proceedings against Greece for non-compliance with EU refugee rights legislation. https://tinyurl.com/45byjecv
[8] See UNHCR, Inter-Agency Protection Monitoring for Refugees in Greece: Key findings, available at: https://tinyurl.com/3z6t3y9f. For the data presented in this paragraph filters have been used, in order to only include the data arising from the surveys carried out with households that were clearly still in the asylum procedure or were waiting for their application to be registered.
[9] Casalis M. et.al., Home for Good? Obstacles and Opportunities for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Greece, December 2023, available at https://tinyurl.com/ycyacy57, pp. 24-26.
[10] AIDA, Country Report: Greece, 2021 Update, May 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/3MRVkLf, p. 185 and AIDA, Country Report: Greece, 2022 Update, June 2023, available at: https://bit.ly/3PUOVk9, p. 184.
[11] Casalis M. et.al., Home for Good? Obstacles and Opportunities for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Greece, December 2023, available at https://tinyurl.com/ycyacy57, pp. 28-32.
[12] GCR, IRC, Diotima, Do the human right thing: Seeking a new life, seeking employment, March 2022, available at: https://bit.ly/42eyDWf. Data derived from 183 participants from September 2021 to February 2022.
[13] SolidarityNow, Generation 2.0., Revealing the Unseen Migrant Workers, March 2025, available here. Data derived from 228 respondents from Athens and Thessaloniki.
[14] Ibid.and UNHCR’s monitoring tool, available here, with results filtered from 1/1/2024 to 31/12/2024 and status “asylum seekers”.
[15] In previous AIDA reports on Greece the same service was referred to as OAED, as this service was called until 2022 when it changed with L 4921/2022 (OGG 75 A’ 18-04-2022) to DYPA.
[16] See Content of international protection.
[17] See UNHCR, Inter-Agency Protection Monitoring for Refugees in Greece: Key findings, available at: https://bit.ly/43dZsuK.
[18] GCR, Observations on the Draft Law transposing the Reception Directive, 31 October 2016, available in Greek at: https://bit.ly/42sh0Cb.
[19] For more, inter alia see AIDA, Country Report Greece: 2022 Update, available at: https://bit.ly/3PUOVk9, pp. 185-186.
[20] See UNHCR, Inter-Agency Protection Monitoring for Refugees in Greece: Key findings, available at: https://tinyurl.com/3z6t3y9f. For the data presented in this paragraph filters have been used, in order to only include the data arising from the surveys carried out with households that were clearly still in the asylum procedure or were waiting for their application to be registered.