Accelerated, prioritised and fast-track asylum procedures

This briefing by the European Council for Refugees and Exiles (ECRE) focuses specifically on the concepts of acceleration, prioritisation and fast-tracking, through an overview of their practical application in selected European countries’ asylum procedures. It explores institutional and administrative arrangements set up for the purpose of managing caseloads,  with examples drawn from recent “track” or “cluster” systems developed in different countries. The briefing also analyses the practice of nationality-based differentiation of treatment of asylum claimants, whether under the legal concept of “safe country of origin” or as a matter of administrative practice, and examines the applicable procedural safeguards and necessary guarantees for individuals undergoing accelerated, prioritised or fast-track procedures, with emphasis on time limits for the processing of the application, deadlines and suspensive effect of appeals, as well as legal assistance.