Directive defining refugee status and subsidiary protection (Qualification Directive)

Directive 2004/83/EC of 29 April 2004 on minimum standards for the qualification and status of third country nationals or stateless persons as refugees or as persons who otherwise need international protection and the content of the protection granted)

The Qualification Directive controls who is granted asylum and subsidiary protection, and which social rights Member States are obliged to give those who seek refugee and subsidiary protection status.

The deadline for implementation: 10 October 2006

[Directive in German]

Directive on social reception

(Directive 2003/9/EC of 27 January 2003 laying down minimum standards for the reception of asylum seekers in Member States of the European Union)

The Reception Directive regulates the social rights granted during an applicant’s asylum procedure. This Directive was adopted by the Council on January 27, 2003 and Member States had until February 6, 2005 to implement the regulations into their national laws.

The deadline for implementation: 6 February 2005

[Directive in German]

Directive on temporary protection

(Council Directive 2001/55/EC of 20 July 2001 on minimum standards for giving temporary protection in the event of a mass influx of displaced persons and on measures promoting a balance of efforts between Member States in receiving such persons and bearing the consequences thereof)

This directive sets out the minimum conditions for the temporary admission of refugees and how the refugees should be distributed among EU Member States in the event there is a crisis that results in a "mass influx" of people. This directive was adopted on July 20, 2001 and published on August 7, 2001. Member States had December 31, 2002 to implement the regulation into their national laws.

Implementation is carried out by § 24 Residence Act

[Directive in German]

Directive on the common asylum procedure

(Council Directive 2005/85/EC of 1 December 2005 on minimum standards on procedures in Member States for granting and withdrawing refugee status)

The Directive establishes minimum standards for the implementation of asylum procedures. The EU interior ministers created this directive without debate on January 12, 2005.

This directive, which adopted standards that were even lower than already established principles of protection, received fierce opposition from the UNHCR, Amnesty International, the European Council on Refugees and Pro Asyl. Even the European Parliament spoke in opposition to this directive, and on September 27, 2005 it demanded extensive changes to the language. Some elements of the directive have also resulted in a legal action that was brought before the European Court of Justice (ECJ). The ECJ subsequently held that the legal basis for EU lists of "safe countries of origin" and "safe third countries" was invalid.

The deadline for implementation was December 1, 2007, mar. Article 15: December 1, 2008

[Directive in German]