European Court of Justice establishes obstacles for the safe countries of origin designation list - European Court of Justice establishes hurdles for lists of safe nations of origin
European Court of Justice Raises Bar for Safe Country Designations in Asylum Procedures
The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has issued new guidelines for designating safe countries of origin, requiring that the assessment of a country's safety must be verifiable and based on concrete evidence. This decision, made in Luxembourg, sets a higher legal threshold for such designations and poses challenges to automatic or broad categorization of countries like Albania as safe.
The "Albania model," which involves Albania being frequently listed as a safe country of origin enabling accelerated asylum procedures, now faces hurdles due to the ECJ's ruling. The Court's decision implies stricter scrutiny and a more individualized assessment rather than a blanket safe country designation.
In April 2025, the European Commission proposed a Union-wide list of seven safe countries (Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, India, Kosovo, Morocco, Tunisia), but Albania was not included. This omission may reflect the heightened scrutiny and legal standards now advocated by the ECJ.
The new rules also align with EU-wide reforms, such as the mandatory border procedure starting June 2026 for applicants from countries with low international protection recognition rates. These reforms aim for faster decisions but under tighter legal safeguards.
In summary, the ECJ now demands verifiable and substantiated evidence for designating safe countries of origin. This raises the legal threshold and restricts automatic inclusion policies, impacting countries like Albania and challenging the "Albania model" approach to fast-track procedures. The new rules also require accelerated but legally robust procedures at borders.
Under the ECJ's new standards, the entire population in a country must be secure for it to be considered safe under EU asylum procedures. EU member states can only establish lists of safe countries if they disclose the sources for their assessment. The ECJ's ruling pertains to the determination of safe countries of origin for accelerated asylum procedures within the EU.
The Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) has made these new rulings in response to a case involving Italy's "Albania model." The ECJ's decisions represent a shift towards balancing efficient asylum processing with stronger protection of asylum seekers’ fundamental rights.
- The European Court of Justice's (ECJ) new policy on safe country designations in asylum procedures now requires verifiable and substantiated evidence for such designations, posing challenges to the "Albania model" and automatic categorization of countries as safe.
- In light of the ECJ's ruling, EU member states must disclose the sources for their assessment when establishing lists of safe countries, aligning with the court's preference for balancing efficient asylum processing with stronger protection of asylum seekers’ fundamental rights.
