Conditions for submitting an asylum application deviating from General Rules
Conditions
for Submitting an Asylum Application Based on Transitional Rules, Deviating
from General Rules pursuant to Act L of 2025 on
Conversion of Emergency Decrees Promulgated in View of the Armed Conflict in
Ukraine into an Act, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Decree
no. 23/2024 (of 30 December) on
Designation of Embassies in Relation to Declaration of Intent for Submitting an
Asylum Application, as well as the Minister of Interior Decree no. 1/2025 (13
January) on the Procedure Related to Declaration of
Intent for Submitting an Asylum Application.
Personal scope of application submission
These procedural
rules apply to foreigners who wish to enter Hungary for the purpose of
submitting an asylum application.
Temporal scope of application submission
This procedure is applicable to declarations of intent submitted on or after July 20, 2025.
Submission Method
The application
must primarily be submitted in the form of a declaration of intent (available both in Hungarian and in English), addressed to
the asylum authority, in person at the diplomatic missions (hereinafter
referred to as embassies), as defined in Section 3 (1) a) of Act LXXIII of 2016
on Foreign Missions and Long-term Foreign Service, operating in non-European
Union Member States bordering Hungary, with the content specified and published
by the asylum authority.
Conduct of Procedure
The declaration
of intent shall be examined by the asylum authority, during which it may
conduct remote interview with the foreigner appearing in person at the
embassies. If the authority concludes that the foreigner is eligible to be
granted a single-entry travel document issued for the purpose of facilitating
entry into the territory of Hungary and asylum application submission (hereinafter
referred to as travel document), it notifies the relevant embassy within 60
days for document issuance. Based on the information provided by the asylum
authority, the Embassy of Hungary shall issue a travel document valid for 30
days to eligible persons who do not have any other permission entitling them to
enter the territory of Hungary. If the authority does not recommend the
issuance of a travel document following examination, the authority will inform
the foreigner through the embassy. Communication between the asylum authority
and the foreigner is facilitated exclusively through embassies.
Additional rules applicable to
foreigners holding a travel document
Foreigners who
are holders of a travel document must immediately notify border police
authorities of their intent to submit an asylum application upon their entry
into Hungary. The border police authority presents the foreigner to the asylum
authority within 24 hours at the latest. The asylum authority may designate a
place of accommodation in a closed reception facility for the applicant by
order. Four weeks after a submission, provided that the conditions for asylum
detention are not met, the authority shall designate a place of accommodation
based on general rules of asylum procedure.
Special Rules
Lodging an asylum application is not conditional on submitting a declaration of intent, and general rules apply to application submission in cases of:
– an unaccompanied minor staying in Hungary,
– a family member of a person
recognised as refugee or beneficiary of subsidiary protection as per Act LXXX of
2007on Asylum, who were residing in Hungary at the time of submission of the
asylum application.
– a person who is under
custodial sentence or measure affecting personal liberty, excluding arrest,
apprehension or imprisonment for an offence.
The police directs foreigners who illegally cross
Hungary's state border and express their intent to submit an asylum application
to the police to the nearest Hungarian embassy located in the country bordering
Hungary as per the place where the crossing took place.
Asylum procedure
The objective of the asylum
procedure is to determine whether the person submitting the asylum application
is eligible for beneficiary of refugee, subsidiary protection, or tolerated
status.
Procedural timeframe
The asylum procedure takes 60
days, during which the applicant is interviewed in person. Certain procedural
acts shall not be counted in the processing timeframe. However, the authority
has the possibility to process the application through an accelerated procedure
within a shorter period of time.
If the possibility arises that another EU Member State
is responsible for processing the application, the procedure is suspended until
the competent authorities of the EU Member State respond. The duration thereof depends
on the cooperation of foreign authorities and can take up to months.
Interview and record
During the
asylum procedure, the applicant shall be interviewed in person with the
assistance of an interpreter. During the interview, the applicant must state the reasons for his/her flight, circumstances related to his/her arrival in
Hungary, and present evidence supporting their application. Additionally, (s)he
must hand over his/her personal identification
documents to the authority.
The asylum authority shall
provide detailed information to the applicant regarding their rights and
obligations during the procedure.
Decision
The following decisions shall be taken in an asylum procedure:
– recognition as a beneficiary
of refugee status;
– recognition as a beneficiary
of subsidiary protection status;
– beneficiary of tolerated
status, which is a special permission allowing temporary stay in Hungary;
– refusal of the application in
full;
– termination of the procedure.
If the application is refused in full, and the
applicant is not entitled to stay in Hungary under any other title, the asylum
authority decides on the applicant's return and removal and determines the
duration of the ban on entry and residence. Applicants who are granted
international protection (refugee, subsidiary protection status, or prohibition
of refoulement) acquire right of residence in Hungary.
If the applicant does not cooperate with the
authority, it shall terminate the procedure or take its decision based on
available data. If the applicant leaves for an unknown destination, the asylum
authority may terminate the procedure but may also take its decision on the
case based on available data.
The asylum authority notifies the applicant and their
legal representative in writing about the date of announcing its decision.
Decisions are taken in Hungarian and in writing, with a copy provided to the
applicant and their legal representative. However, the decision is announced
verbally in a language understood by the applicant.
In asylum procedures, the authority examines whether his/her
application can be processed in an accelerated procedure. If yes, the decision
shall be taken within 15 days of determining the circumstances qualifying as
grounds.
Return
If the
application is refused by the authority, or the applicant withdraws the
application in writing, prevents the processing of his/her application by
refusing to make statements, fails to attend his/her in-person interview, or
prevents or refuses the process of taking his/her fingerprints or facial image,
and lacks any other legal title to stay in Hungary, the authority orders
his/her return from the territory of the European Union, which is enforced by
the aliens policing authority. The asylum authority may impose bans on entry
and residence as well.
Legal Remedy
Applicants may
challenge a decision of refusal or return within the timeframe stated in the
decision before court. The court may uphold or annul the decision and order the
authority to conduct a new procedure.
If a person
granted international protection no longer wishes to retain his/her beneficiary
of refugee or subsidiary protection status, (s)he can renounce it in writing.
It is important to note that the declaration of renunciation cannot be recalled
once the asylum authority has withdrawn the recognition based on the
renunciation.
WITHDRAWAL OF STATUS
According to the
Act LXXX of 2007 on Asylum, the asylum authority is required to withdraw
refugee or subsidiary protection status in certain cases. This is initiated ex officio, and the affected
client is notified of the procedure.
Pursuant to Sections 11(2) and 18(2) of Act LXXX of
2007 on Asylum, recognition must be withdrawn in case of a person having been
granted refugee or subsidiary protection status if:
– (s)he has acquired new citizenship and enjoys the
protection of the country of their new citizenship;
– the conditions for recognition were not met at the
time of the granting decision;
– the circumstances that formed grounds for their
recognition as a refugee have ceased to exist;
– his/her recognition was granted despite the
existence of exclusion criteria under Section 8(1) of Act LXXX of 2007 on
Asylum or if such exclusion criteria now apply to them.
Recognition must also be withdrawn, for example, in case of a foreigner who have voluntarily re-availed themselves of the protection of their country of origin, voluntarily regained their lost citizenship, voluntarily resettled in the country they fled from, or if during the asylum procedure, the foreigner concerned provided false statements, concealed relevant facts, or used falsified documents in matters that substantially impacted the decision of his/her case.
