Asylum Procedure
BASIC TERMS
ASYLUM
Asylum refers to the legal
title that entitles a foreigner who is granted it to reside within the
territory of Hungary, while simultaneously providing protection from
refoulement, return, and extradition.
ASYLUM PROCEDURE
The purpose of the asylum procedure is to determine whether the individual
submitting the asylum application is eligible for refugee or subsidiary
protection status, whether the prohibition of refoulement applies to his/her
case, and, if it does not, whether the person can be subjected to return or
removal, as well as whether the person concerned can be transferred under the
Dublin regulation. The form for the declaration of intent as per Government Decree no.
361/2024 (of 28 November) on Applicability of Transitional
Rules of Asylum Procedures, as well as 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, issued for the purpose of
implementation of Government Decree no. 361/2024 (of 28 November), and the Minister of Interior
Decree no. 1/2025 (13 January) on the Procedure Related to Declaration
of Intent for Submitting an Asylum Application is available both in Hungarian and in English. Further information on the
procedure can be found on this website.
REFUGEE
A refugee is a person who, due
to reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social
group, or political opinion, has suffered persecution in their home country or
has a well-founded fear of such persecution, is currently residing in Hungary,
and has been granted international protection based on his/her application for
beneficiary of refugee status.
In order to ensure unity of
the family, unless there are grounds precluding
recognition, a refugee’s family members specified under Section 2 j) of
Act LXXX of 2007 on Asylum, who were residing in Hungary at the time of the
application (spouse, if the respective family relationship existed before their
arrival in Hungary, minor children including adopted and foster children, as
well as in case of a minor, his/her parents or guardian responsible for him/her
as per Hungarian law) and children born to the refugee in Hungary may also be
recognized as refugees upon application.
Refugee status remains granted
until the beneficiary of refugee status acquires Hungarian citizenship or the
refugee status is withdrawn.
The asylum authority reviews
if the conditions for retaining beneficiary of refugee status are met at least
every three years after recognition or if extradition of the refugee is
requested.
BENEFICIARY OF SUBSIDIARY
PROTECTION
Beneficiary of
subsidiary protection status shall be granted to a person who does not meet the
criteria for recognition as a refugee but faces the risk of serious harm upon
returning to his/her country of origin and is unable to seek the protection of
his/her home country or is unwilling to seek it due to fear of this harm.
Upon
application, in order to ensure the unity of the family, family members, as
outlined in Act LXXX of 2007on Asylum, of a person recognised as a beneficiary
of subsidiary protection may also be granted beneficiary of subsidiary status
unless there are grounds precluding recognition, if the family member submitted
his/her application together with the beneficiary of subsidiary protection or
with the beneficiary’s consent before the decision is taken.
Additionally, children born in
Hungary to a beneficiary of subsidiary protection shall also be granted the
status upon application.
The asylum authority reviews the conditions for retaining subsidiary protection status are met at least every three years after recognition.
BENEFICIARY OF TOLERATED
STATUS
Hungary grants protection
to beneficiaries of tolerated status who are foreigners who do not meet the
criteria for refugee or subsidiary protection status but face the risk of being
persecuted or serious harm in their country of origin due to reasons of race,
religion, nationality, membership in a social group, or political opinion, and there is no safe third country
to accept them. The asylum authority may recognise a person as a beneficiary of
tolerated status if the prohibition of refoulement is established during
immigration procedures or if their asylum application is rejected while
simultaneously establishing the prohibition of refoulement.
The asylum authority reviews
if conditions for retaining beneficiary of tolerated status are met annually.
BENEFICIARY OF TEMPORARY
PROTECTION
Beneficiary of temporary protection status shall be
granted to groups of people who flee their home country en masse due to armed
conflict, civil war, ethnic clashes, or gross and systematic violations of
human rights, such as torture, cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment, based on
decisions by the Council of the European Union or the Hungarian Government.
Additional information is available on the following website: Information for Ukrainian nationals
fleeing from Ukraine.
ABOUT THE ASYLUM PROCEDURE IN GENERAL
How to submit the application
In Hungary an asylum procedure is opened when the application for recognition is submitted with the refugee authority, therefore, if you have been forced to leave your own country due to persecution or risk of serious harm, you have to declare your intention to request international protection as soon as you enter Hungary. The application for recognition must be submitted to the asylum authority in person, however, you may ask to apply for asylum while undergoing immigration, misdemeanour or criminal proceedings.
Address of regional bodies of the National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing responsible for refugee matters:
· Regional Directorate of Budapest and Pest County, Asylum Division
Detention in asylum proceedings
With a view to conducting the asylum procedure or for the purpose of transfer under the Dublin process, the refugee authority is entitled to detain any asylum-seeker whose right of residence lies solely based on the application for asylum, if the conditions for detention in asylum proceedings exist. Detention may be ordered for a maximum period of 72 hours, and it can be extended by up to 60 days by court ruling adopted by recommendation of the refugee authority. The refugee authority may submit requests for extension on more than one occasions, with the proviso that the total duration of detention may not exceed 8 months.
Fingerprint and photograph
Upon receipt of an application for asylum, if the applicant is 14 years of age or older, his/her fingerprint will be taken by the Hungarian authorities and transmitted to a fingerprint database of the European Union called “EURODAC” to determine if the applicant has previously applied for asylum in another EU Member State or if previously resided in another EU Member State. Fingerprints are managed confidentially in the EURODAC system. In addition to fingerprints, a photo will also be taken, which will be handled confidentially as well.
Costs
If this is the applicant’s first asylum procedure in Hungary, he/she will be exempted from all procedural costs of the authority and the court. The costs of interpretation is covered by the Office. Following the first proceedings the person seeking asylum shall be granted individual cost exemption, except if the person seeking asylum is ordered to reimburse the expenses incurred by decision of the refugee authority upon weighing his/her personal circumstances.
Assistance
If during your travel you lost contact with your family members and you wish to contact them again, the refugee authority can help you through the Red Cross or other humanitarian organisations. To this end, please provide all personal data of your family members, including their last known address.
Apart from the refugee authority, you may also request help from other persons and organisations, including lawyers, organisations offering free legal aid or the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
CONTACT INFORMATION FOR ORGANISATIONS OFFERING FREE HELP AND ASSISTANCE
Hungarian Red Cross (Search Group)
1051 Budapest, Arany János utca 31
Mailing address: 1367 Budapest, Pf. 121
Phone: (06 1) 374 1338
e-mail: intdept@redcross.hu
website: http://www.redcross.hu
United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR)
1022 Budapest, Felvinci út 27.
Phone: (06 1) 336 3060
e-mail: hunbu@unhcr.org
website: http://www.unhcr-centraleurope.org
International Organisation for Migration (IOM)
1065 Budapest, Révay u. 12.
Phone: (06 1) 472 2500
e-mail: mrfbudapest@iom.int
website: www.iom.hu
Emberi Erőforrások Minisztériuma (Ministry of Human Capacities)
1055 Budapest, Szalay utca 10-14.
Mailing address: 1051 Budapest, Arany János utca 6-8.
Phone: (06 1) 795 4755
e-mail: info@nefmi.gov.hu
website: http://www.kormany.hu/hu/emberi-eroforrasok-miniszteriuma
Igazságügyi Hivatal (Office of Justice)
1088 Budapest, Múzeum utca 17.
Phone: (06 1) 301 3200
e-mail: info@kih.gov.hu
website: http://igazsagugyihivatal.gov.hu/jogi-segitsegnyujtas
Budapest: 1111 Budafoki út 59 Phone: (06 1) 450 2590. e-mail: isz.jso@bfkh.hu
Pest County: Budapest 1116, Hauszmann Alajos u. 1-3. Phone: (06 1) 450 2592, (06 1) 450 2594, (06 1) 450 2595. e-mail: pest@kih.gov.hu
Debrecen: 4024 Piac u. 42-48. Phone: (06 52) 501 026, -501-027, -501-028. e-mail: hajdu@kih.gov.hu
Nyíregyháza: 4400 Kereszt u. 9. Phone: (06 42) 597 697, -597 696, -597 695. e-mail: szabolcs@kih.gov.hu
Békéscsaba: 5600 Szabadság tér. 20-22. Phone: (06 66) 540 362, -540 361, -540 360. e-mail: bekes@kih.gov.hu
Szeged: 6721 Tisza L. krt. 2-4. Phone: (06 62) 549 196, -549 197, -549 195. e-mail: csongrad@kih.gov.hu
Data protection
The refugee authority maintains confidentiality with respect to all data it has on record, and will only disclose them to Hungarian authorities and courts authorised to access them, and to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The refugee authority will not establish any communication with the authorities of the country of origin if the applicant is persecuted by those authorities.
Competent authorities
The Agency for Constitutional Protections (Alkotmányvédelmi Hivatal; AH) and the Counter-Terrorism Centre (Terrorelhárítási Központ; TEK) will be involved in the asylum procedure as specialist authorities in order to decide whether the applicant’s residence poses a threat to the national security of Hungary. If the person seeking asylum cites the persecution of Christianity in his/her application the Minister of Human Capacities shall hear and determine such case. The time required for the procedures of specialist authorities (15 days) and for other procedural is not included in the procedural time limit.
The process known as the Dublin Procedure
Information about the Dublin procedure is available here
Unaccompanied minors
If the asylum-seeker is below the age of 18 years and arrived to Hungary unaccompanied, the guardian authority will appoint a child welfare officer to assist the asylum-seeker during the procedure. If the refugee authority is of the opinion that the asylum-seeker is presumably not a minor, it will appoint a medical expert to determine the asylum-seeker’s age.
ASYLUM PROCEDURE
Procedural time limit
The asylum procedure will be carried out in 60 days, covering the asylum-seeker’s personal interview as well. The time required for procedural steps is not included in the procedural time limit. However, in some cases the authority has power to bring a decision within a shorter period of time, in a so called accelerated procedure.
If there is any possibility that another EU Member State is responsible for the examination of the application, the procedure will be suspended until the competent authority of that EU Member State provides a response. The duration of such procedure depends on the co-operation of the foreign partner authorities, and may take several months.
Hearing and records
The asylum-seeker will be interviewed during the asylum procedure, assisted by an interpreter. During the interview the applicant is asked to provide details about the reasons for fleeing, the circumstances of reaching Hungary, and to present any evidence that may be available to support the application, including personal identification documents.
During the asylum procedure, the refugee authority will inform the applicant in detail about his/her rights and obligations relating to the procedure.
Decision
In the asylum procedure a decision may be adopted for:
· Granting refugee status
· Granting subsidiary protection
· Granting temporary protection, which enables the asylum-seeker to stay in Hungary on a temporary basis
· Refusing the application in full
· Terminating the procedure.
If the application is refused in its entirety – and if the applicant does not have the right of residence in Hungary on other grounds – the refugee authority shall provide for the expulsion and deportation of the applicant, and shall set the duration of the exclusion measure.
If the applicant is granted international protection as provided for above (i.e. refugee status, subsidiary protection or non-refoulement) the applicant will be given the right of residence in the territory of Hungary. The National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing provides support and assistance to the client so as to facilitate his/her integration into the Hungarian society as soon as possible.
If the applicant refuses to co-operate, the refugee authority shall either terminate the procedure or adopt a decision based on data and information available. If the applicant absconded, the refugee authority may decide to terminate the procedure, or to adopt a decision relating to the application based on data and information available.
The refugee authority shall notify the applicant and his/her legal counsel in writing about the time of delivery of the decision adopted in the asylum procedure. The refugee authority shall bring its decision in writing, in Hungarian, and provide a copy to the applicant and his/her legal counsel, however, it is delivered verbally, in a language that the applicant understands.
In the asylum procedure the authority shall assess whether the accelerated procedure can be applied. If yes, the authority shall adopt a decision in such accelerated procedure within 15 days from the date of occurrence of the underlying circumstance.
Expulsion
If the authority decided to refuse the application, or if the application is withdrawn by the asylum-seeker, or if denies to make a statement, hence obstructing the examination of the application, fails to show for the personal interview, or prevents or refuses to allow to have his/her fingerprint or facial likeness taken, and if there is no other reason for his/her lawful residence in Hungary, the authority shall order his/her expulsion from the territory of the European Union, to be executed by the immigration authority. The refugee authority may also bring an exclusion order.
Remedies
If the application is refused and expulsion is ordered, the applicant may appeal the decision in the court of law within the time limit specified in the decision. The court will either uphold the decision, or may abolish the decision and order the authority to re-examine the application.
WAIVER
If the person admitted for international protection no longer wishes to maintain his/her refugee status or subsidiary protection, it may be waived in writing. Please note that the waiver of refugee status cannot be withdrawn, if the refugee authority has withdrawn the refugee status upon receipt of the waiver.
WITHDRAWAL OF REFUGEE/PROTECTED STATUS
Pursuant to the Asylum Act, in specific cases the refugee authority must withdraw the refugee or subsidiary protection status in certain specific cases. It shall ex officio launch a procedure to that effect, and shall notify the client thereof.
For example, the refugee or subsidiary protection status must be withdrawn from a foreign national who voluntarily relies on the protection of his/her country of origin again, who voluntarily reacquires his/her lost citizenship, who voluntarily returns to the country from where he/she arrived, or who has made any false statement, concealed a true fact or presented fake documents during the asylum procedure which had a material impact on the decision of his/her case, and also if the person admitted for international protection waived his/her refugee status.