Common European Asylum System in a Changing World

for whom there are serious reasons to believe that if they return to the country of origin, or, in the case of a stateless person, to the country of their previous residence, they would be exposed to a real threat of serious harm, and that person cannot or does not wish to accept the protection of the country in question. The Directive provides for facts and circumstances to be taken into account when examining an application for international protection. In accordance with the case law, the examination of the application takes place in two steps. In the first step, a Member State’s authority shall gather credible evidence which the applicant submits in support of its claims. It may request the declaration of the person themselves, or possibly of the persons of the Flies, such as documents from the country of origin or other countries. In the second step, the Member State’s authority completes the legal classification of the collected material to determine whether the applicant qualifies for refugee or subsidiary protection status. The Qualification Directive sets out that the approximation of legislation on the recognition and content of refugee status and subsidiary protection status should help to limit the secondary movement of applicants for international protection between Member States due to differences in legislation while ensuring the application of the principle of non-refoulement. • 2013 Asylum Procedures Directive (recast)

The main objective of this Directive (2013/32) is to further develop the standards for procedures in Member States for granting and withdrawing international protection with a view to establishing a common asylum procedure in the Union. Not all provisions of the Asylum Procedures Directive are mandatory, some of them are optional and Member States are free to decide whether to follow them. The Directive shall apply in respect to applications for asylum or subsidiary protection lodged in the territory of a Member State, including transit zones at airports. It does not apply to applications for international protection lodged in diplomatic missions of EU Member States in third countries. As in the case of the Qualification Directive, Member States may provide for more favourable provisions only if they do not conflict with the provisions of the Directive. The Directive sets up basic principles and guarantees providing for access to procedures, special treatment of applications made on behalf of dependants and minors as well as access to information, counselling, legal assistance and representation. A special role is assigned to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The Directive grants the right to remain pending a final decision by the determining authority in the first instance procedure. It also provides for requirements for the examination of the application including the rights and obligations of applicants and provisions as to the personal interview as a central component of the process. Furthermore,

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