The House of Representatives plenary passed a bill on Thursday evening granting, among other things, powers to revoke refugee or subsidiary protection status when it is determined that a beneficiary falls under exclusion grounds specified in the law.
The bill amended the Refugee Act, with the aim of modernising the international protection system and clarifying procedures following the establishment of the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection.
Specific powers are transferred to the Cabinet, the Deputy Minister of Migration and the Head of the Asylum Service. If, after granting refugee status or subsidiary protection, the Head of the Asylum Service find that the person fell or falls under exclusion grounds, they must revoke that status by a reasoned decision. A 10-day timeframe is introduced for affected individuals to present reasons why their status should not be withdrawn.
Grounds for exclusion
The exclusion grounds are those found in the basic Refugee Law, aligned with the relevant EU directive, covering those seeking protection. What’s changed is that the Asylum Service Head is now empowered to revoke status if a beneficiary is later found to fall under those already existing exclusion grounds.
A person is excluded from refugee status (Article 5(2) in the basic law) if there are serious reasons to believe they have:
· Committed a crime against peace, a war crime, or a crime against humanity
· Committed a serious non-political crime outside Cyprus prior to arrival
· Been guilty of acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations
· Instigated or otherwise participated in such acts
For subsidiary protection (Article 5(2) in the basic law), a person is excluded from subsidiary protection if there are serious reasons to believe they have:
· Committed a crime against peace, a war crime, or a crime against humanity
· They have committed a serious crime
· Been guilty of acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations
· They constitute a danger to society or national security
· Instigated or otherwise participated in such acts above
· Left their country of origin to avoid sanctions for crimes committed, other than those referred to above, which are punishable by imprisonment if they had been committed in the Republic.
Heated debate in parliament
The bill was approved with 27 votes in favour and 15 against, the naysayers being AKEL, the Green Party, and independents Alexandra Attalides and Kostis Efstathiou.
The debate before the plenary was heated with political parties adopting different approaches on migration in general.
ELAM MP Sotiris Ioannou argued that ELAM’s positions were “vindicated,” saying the government now adopts measures the party had proposed since 2022 for removal of protection status from offenders. He linked criminality to migration pressure and called for stricter deportations.
DIKO MP Panikos Leonidou said the picture on migration has significantly improved thanks to government actions, arguing that the ability to immediately revoke status in cases of criminal offences protects public safety and ensures beneficiaries respect the host state.
Independent socialist MP Kostis Efstathiou criticised the transfer of administrative powers to the Deputy Minister, saying an official appointed by the President should not exercise administrative acts without judicial oversight. He urged rejection of the bill. His view was echoed by Attalides.
AKEL MP Aristos Damianou said crime in Cyprus is both “home-grown and imported,” warning that indiscriminate revocation rules could expose the Republic internationally. He argued for case-by-case assessment and further discussion in the Legal Affairs Committee.
After the vote, DISY issued a statement supporting the government’s bill, saying: “This is an essential tool for managing migration and ensuring citizens’ safety. We will proceed with examining our own draft law, which provides that deportation will be one of the penalties for such persons.”
After the vote, the Deputy Ministry welcomed the outcome, noting that the amended legislation enhances the Republic's institutional framework on the management of asylum matters and harmonises national legislation with European legislation.
Source: CNA