Author
According to the Refugee Law,[1] recognised refugees are granted, as soon as possible, a residence permit valid for three years. The permit is renewable for three-year periods only, and there is no possibility for this permit to be issued for longer periods. The law also allows for the residence permit of family members of beneficiaries of refugee status that do not qualify individually as refugees to be valid for less than three years renewable, however in practice this limitation was rarely applied. Residence permits are issued by the Civil Registry and Migration Department (CRMD) and in 2023 there were 2,515 permits of recognised refugees valid until 31 December 2023, concerning 1,654 adults and 861 minors.[2]
In the case of beneficiaries of subsidiary protection status and their family members, the law states that a renewable residence permit valid for one year is issued as soon as possible after international protection has been granted.[3] This permit is renewable for two-year periods for the duration of the status. Again, there is no possibility for such permits to be renewed for longer periods. Residence permits are issued by the Civil Registry and Migration Department (CRMD) and in 2023 there were 10,277 permits of beneficiaries of subsidiary protection status valid until 31 December 2023, concerning 6,448 adults and 3,829 minors.[4]
Moreover, according to the Refugee Law, residence permits for both refuges and subsidiary protection beneficiaries provide the right to remain only in the areas under the control of the Republic of Cyprus (RoC), therefore excluding beneficiaries from the right to remain or even visit areas in the north of the island that are not under the control of the RoC.[5]
In practice, long delays are systematically encountered in the issuance and renewal of residence permits for both refugees and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection and during 2022 delays increased due to the CRMD prioritising Temporary protection holders who receive their residence permits within 5-7 working days on average.[6] Specifically, a BIP, once granted international protection or in the case of renewal, is required to book an appointment on the online platform of the CRMD in order to submit the application in the city in which they are living (if in Nicosia at the CRMD Office, for other cities at the AIU of the that city). Depending on the city, appointments are extremely scarce and can take up to 6 months to secure one. Furthermore, and based on many complaints, throughout 2022, the scarcity in appointments was mainly due to the online platform being abused by agents who book appointments and would then sell these.
In early 2023 the operation of online platform was gradually terminated due to the abuse.[7] Throughout 2023, the procedure and time to submit an application for the issuance or renewal of residence permits differed among cities; in Nicosia an appointment is not required and persons are served on a first-come first served basis[8] whereas in other cities an appointment must be made at the Aliens and Immigration Unit of the city by email or telephone. Appointments are usually scheduled within 2-3 months.[9]
From the submission of the application to issue a residence permit another 4-5 months will elapse until the permit is issued. During this period, and as a result of advocacy interventions from NGOs and UNHCR, the receipt that is given when the application for the permit is submitted is accepted to access certain rights, such as State assistance via the Guaranteed Minimum Income scheme. However, there are rights that cannot be accessed or are problematic to access such as access to the health system, social schemes for persons with disabilities and opening of bank accounts. Access to a bank account also impacts employment as employers request a bank account to transfer salaries and may refuse to hire or proceed to terminate employment. Furthermore, employers are often reluctant to hire or maintain employment of a beneficiary of protection whose residence permit is not valid in fear that they may be employing someone without legal status.
Regarding family members, up to 2019 the CRMD issued residence permits for family members of recognised refugees and beneficiaries of subsidiary protection that did not exist prior to the entry of the refugee into Cyprus; the permits referred to a ‘spouse or child of a refugee. In 2019, the CRMD ceased this practice with the justification that it did not have a legal basis and was merely a practice. Until 2023 the CRMD had not provided an effective alternative status or residence permit leaving persons who have been living for many years in the country without status, residence permit, access to rights, and in many cases leading to loss of employment and the main income of the family.[10] The Ombudsman,[11] in a report on the issue, and the Commissioner for Rights of the Child,[12] in response to complaints submitted, have both identified it as a gap in the law that violates the principle of family unity, calling on legislative amendments and for the administration to take steps to identify an interim solution. To date no legislative amendments have taken place.
From 2020 and continuing in 2022 and 2023, the Asylum Service has set up a procedure by which they assess the protection needs of family members. If it is decided that there are protection needs, a decision is issued granting international protection which includes the names of the family members. However, in practice such decisions have been issued mainly for minor children of beneficiaries of protection and not for spouses or adult children, leaving them without status, and access to rights.
In 2023, the CRMD in order to address the issue, initiated a practice by which they grant humanitarian status to the spouse and/or parent of BIP. The “special residence permit” is valid for 12 months, granting the right to remain, access to health under the same conditions as an asylum seeker and access to the labour market but subject to the authorisation of the Labour Department.[13] Furthermore, the residence permit will be issued only once and before the expiration of the 12 months, the applicant has to apply for a residence permit for employment reasons, which requires a specific employer to support the application.[14]
[1] Article 18A Refugee Law.
[2] Information provided by Civil Registry and Migration Department.
[3] Article 19(4) Refugee Law.
[4] Information provided by Civil Registry and Migration Department.
[5] Articles 18A and 19(4) Refugee Law.
[6] Based on information from beneficiaries/cases represented by the Cyprus Refugee Council.
[7] Cyprus Mail, Government admits abuse in migration department, 19 March 2023, available at: http://bit.ly/3LRW4Qx; Politis, He knew about the agents… at the Migration Department and Nouris turned a blind eye, 22 March 2023, available at: http://bit.ly/3TQG8jf; Phileleftheros, Brake on online appointments by the Migration Department – Abuse by agents, 19 March 2023, available in Greek at: https://tinyurl.com/3mu9jxd5
[8] Civil Registry Department, Appointments, available at: https://tinyurl.com/yfjmahra.
[9] Cyprus Police, Appointments, available at: https://tinyurl.com/4m6pr8cm.
[10] Information provided by Cyprus Refugee Council.
[11] Report of the Commissioner for Administration and Protection of Human Rights regarding the Family Unity of beneficiaries of International Protection, Έκθεση Επιτρόπου Διοικήσεως και Προστασίας Ανθρωπίνων Δικαιωμάτων αναφορικά με την Οικογενειακή Ενότητα δικαιούχων Διεθνούς Προστασίας, available in Greek at: https://bit.ly/3nsaoF1
[12] Based on the response to individual complaints submitted by the Cyprus Refugee Council before the Commissioner for the Rights of the Child.
[13] Based on information from the representation of beneficiaries of International Protection by the Cyprus Refugee Council.
[14] Ibid.