Measures applicable to the asylum border procedure in a situation of crisis or force majeure

1. In a situation of crisis or force majeure , Member States may, as regards applications made within the period during which this Article is applied, derogate from Article 51(2) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1348, by extending the maximum duration of the border procedure for the examination of applications set out in that Article by an additional period of maximum six weeks. That period shall not be used in addition to the period referred to in Article 51(2), third subparagraph, of that Regulation.

2. In a situation of crisis as referred to in Article 1(4), point (a), or force majeure , by way of derogation from Article 45(1) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1348, Member States may not be required to examine, in a border procedure, applications made by applicants referred to in Article 42(1), point (j), of that Regulation, when the measures in the contingency plan of the concerned Member State referred to in Article 32 of Directive (EU) 2024/1346 are not sufficient to address that situation.

3. In a situation of crisis as referred to in Article 1(4), point (a), by way of derogation from Article 45(1) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1348, Member States may reduce the threshold provided for in Article 42(1), point (j), to 5 %.

4. In a situation of crisis as referred to in Article 1(4), point (a), by way of derogation from Article 44(1), point (b), of Regulation (EU) 2024/1348, Member States may, in a border procedure, take decisions on the merits of an application in cases where the applicant is a national or, in the case of stateless persons, a former habitual resident of, a third country for which the proportion of decisions granting international protection by the determining authority is, according to the latest available yearly Union-wide average Eurostat data, 50 % or lower, in addition to the cases referred to in Article 42(1), point (j), of that Regulation, taking into account the rapidly evolving protection needs that might arise in the country of origin as reflected in quarterly updates of Eurostat data.

5. When applying paragraph 3 or 4 of this Article, the Member State concerned shall prioritise the examination of applications for international protection lodged by persons with special procedural or special reception needs as defined in Directive (EU) 2024/1346 and in Regulation (EU) 2024/1348, and minors and their family members. When applying paragraph 3, 4 or 6 of this Article, the Member State concerned may also prioritise the examination of application for international protection s which are likely to be well-founded.

6. In a situation of crisis as referred to in Article 1(4), point (b), by way of derogation from Article 44(1), point (b), and Article 53(2), point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2024/1348, Member States may, in a border procedure, take decisions on the merits of all applications that are made by any third-country national or stateless person who is subject to instrumentalisation and that are registered within the period during which this paragraph is applied.

7. When applying paragraph 6, Member States shall:

exclude from the border procedure minors under the age of 12 and their family members, and persons with special procedural or special reception needs as defined in Directive (EU) 2024/1346 and in Regulation (EU) 2024/1348; or

cease to apply the border procedure in respect of the following categories of applicants where it is determined, on the basis of an individual assessment, that their applications are likely to be well-founded:

minors under the age of 12 and their family members; and

vulnerable persons with special procedural or special reception needs as defined in Directive (EU) 2024/1346 and in Regulation (EU) 2024/1348.

This paragraph shall be without prejudice to the mandatory nature of the border procedure as referred to in Article 46 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1348.

8. Where the Member State concerned is authorised to apply the derogation referred to in paragraph 6 of this Article, the Council implementing decision as referred to in Article 4(3) shall specify whether paragraph 7, point (a) or (b), applies, based on the indication made by the Member State concerned in accordance with Article 2(2), point (d).

9. The Member State facing a situation of crisis or force majeure shall not apply or shall cease to apply the derogation from the asylum procedure provided for in paragraphs 4 and 6 of this Article in cases where there are medical reasons for not applying the border procedure in accordance with Article 53(2), point (d), of Regulation (EU) 2024/1348, or where the necessary support cannot be provided to applicants with special reception needs in accordance with Directive (EU) 2024/1346 or with special procedural needs in accordance with Article 53(2), point (c), of Regulation (EU) 2024/1348.

10. For the purpose of applying the derogations referred to in this Article, the basic principles of the right to asylum and the respect of the principle of non-refoulement, as well as the guarantees provided for in Chapters I and II of Regulation (EU) 2024/1348 shall apply to ensure that the rights of those who seek international protection, including the right to an effective remedy, are protected.

Organisations and persons permitted under national law to provide advice and counselling shall have effective access to applicants held in detention facilities or present at border crossing points. Member States may impose limits to such actions where, by virtue of national law, they are objectively necessary for the security, public order or administrative management of a detention facility, provided that access is not thereby severely restricted or rendered impossible.

11. The derogations provided for in this Article do not affect the process of determining the Member State responsible within the framework of Regulation (EU) 2024/1351. Where that process is longer than the maximum duration of the asylum border procedure in a situation of crisis or force majeure , the process and the remainder of the asylum procedure shall be completed in the territory of the determining Member State in accordance with Article 51 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1348.

REGULATION (EU) 2024/1359 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 14 May 2024 addressing situations of crisis and