EU must provide legal avenues for asylum seekers to reach the EU territory

The Red Cross and Red Crescent EU office (ICRC) has published a position paper entitled ‘Legal Avenues to Access International Protection in the EU’. ICRC recommends the creation of a uniform and easily accessible legal mechanism to appeal against denial of entry to EU territory, the promotion of issuing humanitarian visas and the exemption from visa regulations of UNHCR-recognised refugees whose protection needs cannot be fully met in their country of residence. The paper also calls for a reassessment of the implications of carrier sanctions on transport companies carrying people without full documentation on the protection of human rights. Finally, the paper welcomes the adoption of theJoint EU Resettlement Programme and urges Member States to commit to resettling higher numbers of refugees.