Appealing the decision of the Migration and Citizenship Service
You have the right to appeal to the court (in court instances) against any negative decision made by the Migration and Citizenship Service (MCS) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, regarding your asylum application.
If you have appealed the MCS decision, before the court will make a final decision you are considered as an asylum-seeker and have the right to legally reside in the territory of Armenia, benefit from the available services and reside in the Reception Center. You will not be deported/ returned to your country of citizenship or country of permanent residence until there is a final decision.
You have the right to receive legal aid for appealing the MCS decision to the court. For free legal aid you should apply to the Public Defender’s Office of the Chamber of Advocates. For free legal aid you can also apply to UNHCR partner – Mission Armenia NGO (see the activity map of the NGO).
You will be provided with a public defender, who will help you with the appeal procedure – give you free legal consultation, prepare a claim for submitting to the court and defend your interests in court instances (only in case you do not have sufficient means to cover the expenses of hiring a lawyer yourself and only if the Public Defender’s Office or Mission Armenia NGO find that there are sufficient grounds for the appeal).
If you have financial means, you may hire a lawyer on your own means by applying to the Chamber of Advocates of the Republic of Armenia or any lawyer’s office.
To appeal against the negative decision, it is necessary to submit the appeal to the Republic of Armenia Administrative court. The content of application should meet the requirements of the Republic of Armenia legislation; otherwise, the court will not admit it. For appealing a negative decision, it is recommended to apply to a lawyer who will assist you in the appeal procedure.
Appeal procedure
The appeal procedure is implemented by three court instances:
- the Administrative Court [Address: 23, Garegin Nzhdeh Ave.,Yerevan; Telephone: +37410 447 121 (appealing a negative decision on asylum application)];
- the Administrative Court of Appeals [Address:3/9, Tbilisyan Ave., Yerevan; Telephone: +37410 201 195 (appealing decision to the Administrative Court of Appeals)];
- the Court of Cassation [Civil and Administrative Chamber. Address: 5, Vazgen Sargsyan St., Yerevan; Telephone: +37410 511 735 (appealing decision to the Civil and Administrative Chamber of the Court of Cassation)].
There is no exact time frame defined for court to review your claim.
Appeal decisions
The Administrative Court can issue the following decisions:
- to reject a claim,
- to satisfy a claim,
- to annul decision of the Migration and Citizenship Service and to compel the Migration and Citizenship Service to re-consider the decision.
The Administrative Court of Appeals can issue the following decisions:
- to reject a claim,
- to satisfy a claim,
- to annul the decision of the Administrative Court and send the case to the Administrative Court for reconsideration.
The Court of Cassation may issue one of the following decisions:
- to refuse to accept the cassation appeal for examination due to the absence of respective grounds,
- to reject the cassation appeal,
- to fully or partially annul the respective court decision and send it back to the respective court for reconsideration,
- to partially annul and change the respective court decision if there are enough factual circumstances for the Court of Cassation to make such a decision,
- to annul the decision of the Administrative Court of Appeals and establish the legality of the decision of the Administrative Court.
Time limit for appeal submissions
You may appeal the MCS negative decision to the RA Administrative Court within 2 months after notification on the MCS decision on your asylum application. If you do not apply to the court within this time period, the decision by the MCS will be considered final. The period for launching an appeal may be renewed only if there are valid reasons for missing it. The reasons for missing the appeal period are considered to be valid, if they do not fall within the sphere of your influence.
After the reasons for missing the appeal period disappear, you can submit an appeal to the court within 15 days, but no later than within three months starting from the day you got the notification about the decision on your asylum application. If you do not lodge the appeal within this period, the decision of the MCS will be considered final.
Procedure of processing of a new application for asylum
If you have submitted a new application for asylum (repeated application), you will be interviewed by the MCS official to find out whether there are grounds for processing a new application.
If during the interview it becomes clear that there are no grounds for processing a new application, your new application will not be examined.
If it turns out that there are grounds for processing a new application, your new application will be examined by the MCS and a decision will be made to grant or reject refugee status.
In case of a negative decision you can appeal it to the court. In this case you are still considered as an asylum-seeker and have all rights set out for asylum-seekers.