Author
General (scope, grounds for accelerated procedures, time limits)
Since 2016 a specific ‘accelerated procedure’[1] (usually simply referred to as ‘Track 2’) has been established by Article 3.109ca of the Aliens Decree, for applicants who are presumed to:
- come from a Safe Country of Origin; or
- benefit from international protection in another EU Member State.
In these cases, the procedure in practice is conducted in less than 8 working days. The procedure is not applied to unaccompanied children in practice, although this is not forbidden by law.[2] In addition, asylum requests from certain groups are handled in the Regular Procedure of Track 4 instead of Track 2. This is the case for groups exempted from the safe country of origin designation, such as LGBTQI+, journalists, women or human rights activists. However, asylum applicants need to prove that they belong to such exempted groups in their registration interview. As such, it is possible that the IND does not believe that someone is a human rights activist, which means the asylum application is handled in Track 2 instead of Track 4.
Up until October 2024, certain regions could also be excluded from the safe country of origin designation, such as Jammu and Kashmir in India.[3] However, the CJEU ruled in CV v. Czechia that a country could only be designated as a ‘safe country of origin’ if the entire territory fulfilled these requirements.[4] This led to countries with exempted regions, meaning India and Georgia, to be removed from the list.[5] Asylum applicants from those countries will thus forth be handled in Track 4.
Vulnerable people are not exempted from their asylum request being processed in Track 2. In addition, the medical examination is not mandatory in Track 2. However, in a judgment of 6 September 2023, the Council of State ruled that the Minister always needs to look out for signs that an asylum applicant is vulnerable. However, this does not mean that the asylum request should be handled in Track 4.[6]
In 2022, approximately 1,020 applications were processed under Track 2.[7] In 2023, approximately 1,150 applications were processed under Track 2.[8]
Detailed interview
The same rules and obstacles as in the Regular Procedure: Personal Interview apply.
Appeal
Applications falling under the accelerated procedure may be rejected either as inadmissible or manifestly unfounded. Therefore, an appeal before the Regional Court must be lodged within one week and has no automatic suspensive effect.
Legal assistance
Contrary to the regular procedure, asylum applicants channelled under the accelerated procedure (‘Track 2’) are not appointed a lawyer from the outset of the procedure. The lawyer is appointed when the IND issues the intention to reject. As a result, there is not much time for the lawyer to get to know the applicant’s case.
[1] The term ‘simplified procedure’ is used by the IND in the relevant information leaflet, available at: http://bit.ly/2w3lOiW.
[2] IND Work Instruction 2024/8 Spoor 2, 28 August 2024, available in Dutch at: https://bit.ly/42dDXga.
[3] Aliens Circular, paragraph C7/1.2.
[4] CJEU, Case C-406/22, CV v. Czechia, 4 October 2024, available at: https://bit.ly/40tzRzc.
[5] IND, Information Message 2024/61 Arrest Hof van Justitie veilige landen van herkomst, India en Georgië niet langer aangemerkt als veilig land, 9 October 2024, available in Dutch at: https://bit.ly/42dERt4.
[6] Council of State, Decision No 202201535, ECLI:NL:RVS:2023:3365, 6 September 2023, available in Dutch at: https://bit.ly/48b7oyz.
[7] Ministry of Justice and Security, Staat van Migratie 2023, 06 October 2023, available in Dutch at: https://bit.ly/3RUo0FO.
[8] Ministry of Justice and Security, De Staat van Migratie 2024, 99, available in Dutch at: https://bit.ly/4fmZwh1.