In the beginning of July, several important legislative amendments were passed regarding crisis measures to relieve pressure on the asylum system.
- The Royal Decree of 11 July 2003 for regulating the workings of and the procedures before the Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons has been amended, reducing from 15 to 8 days the standard period for justifying one’s absence at a personal interview (see article 18, § 2, paragraph 1 of the Royal Decree, as amended). This change only applies to personal interviews for which the letter of invitation is sent after the amendment comes into force, i.e. from 4 August 2025 onwards. When in doubt, you can check the time limit in the letter of invitation. The limit in which the applicant has to provide a valid reason for being absent at the interview is mentioned in a box near the end of the letter
- As a result of an amendment to the Act of 15 December 1980 regarding access to the territory, residence, settlement and the removal of foreign nationals, an application for international protection submitted by a foreigner who has already received a final decision on a previous application in another EU Member State, is from now on registered and considered as a subsequent application for international protection.
All these measures will enter into force regrading applications submitted as from Monday 4 August (i.e. 10 days after publication in the Belgian Official Gazette).
It is very important that the CGRS is always informed of the latest address where the applicant is officially residing in Belgium, i.e. his or her chosen place of residence. If the address that was given when the application was registered has changed, this must be reported to the Immigration Office and the CGRS as soon as possible. To do so, use the Declaration: Change of chosen place of residence form and send it by registered post. If this is not possible, you can also hand in the form in person at the Reception Desk at the CGRS. If the applicant has not chosen a place of residence, all his or her correspondence will be sent to the address of the CGRS.