Author
General (scope, criteria, time limits)
No specific procedure is designated as “admissibility procedure” in Croatia. However, it is possible for the Department for International Protection procedure to take a decision without entering into a further in-depth examination of the application (i.e. an examination on the merits) when the grounds for the dismissal of the application are met.
An application will be dismissed where:[1]
- The applicant has been granted international protection in another member state of the European Economic Area;
- The applicant has been granted international protection in a third state whose rights he or she still enjoys, including the guarantees stemming from non-refoulement, provided that he or she will be received back into that state;
- It is possible to apply the concept of Safe Third Country;
- It is possible to apply the concept of European safe third country;
- The responsibility of another member state of the European Economic Area is established to consider the application; or
- The application was lodged by a national of a member state of the European Union.
There are no specific time limits that must be respected by the Ministry of Interior in the first instance procedure for delivering a dismissal decision, and the rules governing the regular procedure are applicable.
In case of a subsequent application,[2] the admissibility of the application shall be assessed on the basis of the facts and evidence it contains, and in connection with the facts and evidence already used in the previous procedure. If it is established that the subsequent application is admissible, a decision shall be rendered once again on the merits of the application, and the previous decision would be revoked.
The subsequent application would be dismissed if it is established that it is inadmissible i.e. if the subsequent application is not understandable and does not contain relevant facts and evidence which arose after decision became final or which the applicant for justified reasons did not present during the previous procedure relating to establishing the meeting of the conditions for approval of international protection (see section on Subsequent Applications).
In 2021, the Ministry of Interior dismissed the cases of 105 applicants on the basis of Art. 43, para. 1, item 1 of the LITP (granted international protection in another EEA Member State), for 82 applicants based on Art. 43, para 1, item 5 of the LITP (established responsibility of another EEA Member State to consider the application), for one applicant on the basis of Art. 43, para. 1, item 6 of the LITP (application submitted by a national of an EU Member State) and for 28 applicants based on Art. 43, para. 2 of the LITP (dismissal of a subsequent application if it is determined that such an application is inadmissible in accordance with Article 47, para. 6 of the LITP).[3]
In 2022, the cases in which the Ministry of Interior dismissed the applications on the grounds of inadmissibility are as follows: for one applicant, the decision was made on the basis of Art. 41, para. 2 of the Law on General Administrative Procedure (lack of legal preconditions to initiate the proceeding), for 35 applicants on the basis of Art. 43, para. 1, item 1 of the LITP (granted international protection in another EEA Member State), for 29 applicants based on Art. 43, para 1, item 5 of the LITP (established responsibility of another EEA Member State to consider the application), and for 10 applicants on the basis of Art. 43, para. 2 of the LITP (dismissal of a subsequent application if it is determined that such an application is inadmissible in accordance with Article 47, para. 6 of the LITP, i.e. that the subsequent application is not comprehensible or does not contain the relevant facts and evidence which arose after the finality of the decision or which the applicant for justified reasons did not present during the previous procedure relating to establishing the meeting of the conditions for approval of international protection.[4]
Personal interview
The interview is conducted by the Ministry of Interior (i.e. by decision makers from the Department for International Protection Procedure). According to the LITP, the personal interview would not be undertaken if the admissibility of a subsequent application is being assessed.[5] In such cases, usually only the applicant makes the application in writing i.e. fills in form stating the reasons for subsequent application and explaining why those reasons were not mentioned in the previous procedure.
Appeal
According to the LITP the deadline for appealing a dismissal decision before the Administrative Court is 8 days after the delivery of the decision of the Ministry of Interior.[6]
As for suspensive effect, the LITP provides all lawsuits with suspensive effect, except for lawsuits against dismissal decisions on “first country of asylum” grounds where the applicant has refugee status in another country or when a subsequent application is dismissed.[7]
Legal assistance
Regarding free legal assistance in “inadmissible” cases, the general provisions about the right and access to free legal assistance apply, meaning that free legal aid in terms of representation is not foreseen in the first instance procedure, but only in the preparation of a lawsuit to the Administrative Court, including representation before the Administrative Court,[8] if requested by the applicant (see section on Regular Procedure: Legal Assistance).
[1] Article 43(1) LITP.
[2] Article 47 LITP.
[3] Croatian Law Centre: The Croatian Asylum System In 2021 – National Report, The report was prepared as part of the project “Access to the territory and the asylum system in Croatia – legal support and capacity building” with the financial support of the UNf the UNHCR; available in Croatian at: https://bit.ly/3NgBDfc and in English at: https://bit.ly/3NBvVpC.
[4] Croatian Law Centre, The Croatian Asylum System in 2022 – National Report. The report was prepared as part of the project “Legal Assistance and Capacity Building for Access to Territory and Asylum in Croatia“, with financial support of the UNHCR Croatia: available in English at: https://bit.ly/434T7RL.
[5] Article 35(8)(3) LITP.
[6] Article 43(3) LITP.
[7] Article 51(1)(2)-(3) LITP, citing Article 43(1)(1)-(2) and Article 43(2) LITP.
[8] Article 60 LITP.