The unlawful suspension of access to asylum in Greece must be immediately withdrawn

Athens, 16 July 2025 [Updated 21 July 2025]: We, the undersigned civil society organisations, condemn the unlawful and impermissible legislative provision adopted by the Hellenic Parliament on Friday 11 July 2025 (Article 79 of Law 5218/2025) which imposes a three-month suspension on the making of asylum applications for people arriving in Greece from North Africa and orders their immediate deportation without registration.

The right to seek asylum and protection from refoulement are fundamental principles that may never be restricted. Both are enshrined in international and EU law instruments that supersede any domestic legislative provision, as already highlighted by reputable institutions at Greek and international level, including the Greek Ombudsman, the Greek National Commission for Human Rights, the Union of Greek Administrative Judges, the Plenary of Greek Bar Associations, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights and UNHCR.

We call on the Greek government to immediately withdraw this unlawful legislative provision and on the European Commission to take urgent measures to enforce EU law and to immediately put an end to its infringement, in line with its responsibilities under the Treaties.

The undersigned organisations

1. Action for Women
2. aditus foundation
3. Albanian Migrants Association “Mother Teresa”
4. Alma Community Therapies
5. Amnesty International
6. AMOKA / Athens Museum of Queer Arts
7. ANTIGONE – Centre on Information and Documentation on Racism, Ecology, Peace and
Non-Violence
8. ARSIS Association for the Social Support of Youth
9. Asociación Pro Derechos Humanos de España (APDHE)
10. Associazione Ricreativa e Culturale Italiana (ARCI)
11. Association for Legal Studies on Immigration (ASGI)
12. Asylum Campaign
13. Athens Pride
14. Avocats Sans Frontières France
15. Boat Refugee Foundation
16. Border Violence Monitoring Network (BVMN)
17. Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies
18. Caritas Hellas
19. Changemakers Lab
20. Collective Aid
21. Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ)
22. CPT – Aegean Migrant Solidarity
23. CRIBS International
24. Cyprus Refugee Council (CyRC)
25. Defence for Children International Greece
26. Diotima Centre
27. Doctors Without Borders – Greek Section
28. Dråpen i Havet
29. Dynamo International Social Street Workers Network
30. ECHO100PLUS
31. Emantes – International LGBTQIA+ Solidarity
32. EmpowerVan
33. Equal Legal Aid (ELA)
34. Equal Rights Beyond Borders
35. Equinox Initiative for Racial Justice
36. EUROCEF
37. EuroMed Rights
38. European Council on Refugees and Exiles (ECRE)
39. European Lawyers in Lesvos (ELIL)
40. European Observatory for Non-Discrimination and Fundamental Rights (EONDFR)
41. Faros
42. Fenix Humanitarian Legal Aid
43. Fondation pour la Promotion des Droits en Algérie
44. Greek Council for Refugees (GCR)
45. Greek Forum of Migrants
46. Greek Forum of Refugees
47. Greek Helsinki Monitor (GHM)
48. Greek Housing Network
49. Hellenic League for Human Rights (HLHR)
50. HIAS Greece
51. Human Rights Association (IHD)
52. Human Rights Watch (HRW)
53. The HOME Project
54. HORIZONS Youth Migrants Network
55. Human Rights Legal Project
56. I Have Rights
57. Inter Alia
58. InterEuropean Human Aid Association
59. International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)
60. International Rescue Committee (IRC) Hellas
61. Internationale Liga für Menschenrechte
62. INTERSOS HELLAS
63. Irida Women’s Centre
64. Iridia Association – Centre for the Defence of Humans Rights
65. Ithaca Laundry
66. Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Europe
67. Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Greece
68. Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Malta
69. Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Portugal
70. Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Serbia
71. Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) Switzerland
72. Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) UK
73. KISA Action for Equality, Support, Antiracism
74. Legal Centre Lesvos
75. Lesvos Solidarity
76. Licra Bas-Rhin
77. Lighthouse Relief
78. Ligue des droits de l’Homme (LDH)
79. Médecins du Monde International
80. Migrant Voice
81. Mobile Info Team
82. Mouvement International d’Apostolat des Milieux Sociaux Indépendants (MIAMSI)
83. Network for Children’s Rights
84. Northern Lights Aid
85. Office international de l’enseignement catholique (OIEC)
86. PAX Romana (ICMICA- MIIC)
87. Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM)
88. Pope John XXIII Community
89. PRAKSIS
90. PRO ASYL
91. Project Armonia
92. Refcheck point (Positive Voice)
93. Refugee Support Aegean (RSA)
94. Refugees International
95. Refugees Welcome, Denmark
96. RENATE Network (Religious in Europe Networking against Trafficking and Exploitation)
97. Safe Passage International Greece
98. Safe Place Greece
99. Samos Volunteers
100. SAO Association Hellas
101. Save the Children
102. Second Tree
103. Servicio Jesuita a Migrantes España
104. Stagona / Drop in the Ocean
105. Symbiosis-Council of Europe School of Political Studies
106. Terre des hommes Hellas
107. Thalassa of Solidarity
108. Velos Youth Centre
109. Vouliwatch