If you are a refugee or an asylum-seeker in detention, or if you know someone who is in detention, and in need of assistance, contact UNHCR Cyprus immediately.
If you are in prison or being held by the police in detention, you can apply for asylum at the prison / detention centre / police station where you are being held.
Detention and imprisonment of asylum-seekers is not permitted for the sole reason of being an asylum-seeker.
Even if you have received a rejection from the Asylum Service, you are still considered an asylum-seeker as long as you have submitted an appeal and your case is pending. You cannot be detained solely because your first asylum claim was rejected, as your legal status remains that of an asylum-seeker until a final decision is issued.
Under Cypriot law, the detention of asylum-seekers is exceptionally allowed by the law in certain cases only. Detention of asylum-seekers may only be ordered after individual assessment, and only if alternatives to detention have been exhausted. These alternatives are:
- Regular reporting to the authorities
- Release on bail / deposit of a financial guarantee
- Obligation to stay in assigned centre or place of accommodation with regular checks from the authorities
- Supervision arrangements
NOTE: Detention of asylum-seekers under 18 years of age is prohibited under Cypriot law.
If the reason for your arrest by the Police is because you are accused of committing a crime, the Police can arrest you only if you are caught during the act, or if they have a Court order. This is different from administrative detention for which information is provided above.
Your rights while in detention:
- You have the right to be informed of the reason for your detention.
- You have the right to contact a lawyer, UNHCR, and your family.
- You are entitled to legal visits, and meetings with NGOs and religious representatives.
- You must be provided with medical care and treated with dignity.
- You may use your own mobile phone or request to use the centre’s landline if you have no phone credit.
- You should receive written information about your rights and how to access legal assistance.
Why someone might be detained
Detention can be divided in three categories:
- Criminal detention
- Administrative detention
- De-facto detention
Administrative Detention
You cannot be detained solely because you are an asylum-seeker.
However, administrative detention may be used in certain situations as prescribed by the law. When you are placed under administrative detention, a detention order must be issued against you, and the reasons of the detention must be explained in the detention order. The detention order must be explained to you in a language that you understand.
If you remain in the Republic of Cyprus irregularly and you are not considered an asylum seeker (either because you have not applied for asylum, or your asylum application has been rejected from the Asylum Service and the International Protection Administrative Court, or for other reasons), and you are arrested, the authorities may issue a detention order against you based on the Aliens and Immigration Law, along with a deportation order. The authorities are required to first consider other options (called alternatives to detention).
If you are an asylum seeker, then the authorities can only detain you in very limited circumstances, and only as a last resort. Authorities are required to first consider other options (called alternatives to detention) such as reporting obligations, financial guarantees, or designated accommodation. If you are an asylum seeker, the detention order against you will be issued based on the Refugee Law
The Republic of Cyprus Refugee law provides that an asylum-seeker may be detained only:
(a) in order to determine or verify his or her identity or nationality;
(b) in order to gather information about the application which could not be obtained if the applicant were not detained, in particular when there is a risk of the applicant absconding
(c) in order to decide on the asylum-seeker’s right to enter the territory;
(d) in order to assess the validity of the claim being made in the application in case the asylum-seeker has already received a deportation order before applying for asylum, and that the application has not been made for international protection merely in order to delay or frustrate the enforcement of the return decision;
(e) when protection of national security or public order so requires;
(f) in case there is a decision under the Dublin Procedure to be transferred to another EU Member State, and there is a significant risk that the asylum-seeker will not comply with the procedure.
NOTE: Detention of asylum-seekers under 18 years of age is prohibited under Cypriot law.
Even if you applied for asylum after being detained, your asylum application must still be processed. are required to first consider other options (called alternatives to detention) such as reporting obligations, financial guarantees, or designated accommodation.
Important: Even if you have received a rejection from the Asylum Service, you are still considered an asylum-seeker as long as you have submitted an appeal and your case is pending. You cannot be detained simply because your first asylum claim was rejected. Your legal status remains that of an asylum-seeker until a final decision is issued by the International Protection Administrative Court.
Criminal detention
The police can detain any person who is a suspect or is accused of committing a crime. Detention can take place if the individual is caught in the act of committing a crime or preparing to commit a crime. Alternatively, the police may arrest and detain a person following a court order.
If you are arrested and placed under criminal detention, you have the following rights:
- The police must explain to you why you have been arrested and detained at the latest when you are taken to the police station. This information must be provided in a language you understand, and if necessary, through an interpreter.
- You have the right to communicate with your lawyer, a relative, or any other person to inform them of your arrest and detention. The police must provide you with the means to do this.
- The police must inform you that you have the right to contact a lawyer, UNHCR or any non-governmental or human rights organisation. You must be given a list of lawyers.
- The Police must bring you before a Court within 24 hours from your arrest.
- You must be given a leaflet in a language that you understand explaining your rights as a person in detention. You have the right to:
- daily visits from a relative or friend for one hour;
- visits from your lawyer at any time of the day;
- receive respectable living conditions and treatment;
- medical care – report any health concerns promptly.
De-facto detention
De-facto detention is when no detention order is issued against you, and you have ot been offiially informed about your detention, but you are restricted from exiting a specific area. In other words, de-facto detention happens when you are prohibited from leaving an area, but the authorities do not tell you that you are detained. This is prohibited by the law.
What you should do:
If you are detained, you have the right to seek legal help. You should contact:
- A lawyer (you must be provided with a list of lawyers and given access to a phone);
- UNHCR Cyprus;
- A trusted NGO or human rights organisation.
You must be informed—in a language you understand—of the reason for your detention, your rights, and the available legal remedies. If no interpreter is provided, ask for one.
Challenging administrative and de-facto detention
You have the right to challenge your detention in court, and you may be eligible for free legal aid. The procedure depends on the legal basis of your detention:
- If detained under the Refugee Law, you can submit an appeal to the International Protection Administrative Court (IPAC) within 15 days of receiving your detention order. The IPAC has the obligation to issue a decision on your appeal, one month after you submit it (unless otherwise requested by your lawyer).
- You may also submit a Habeas Corpus application to the Supreme Court to challenge the length of your detention.
- If detained under the Aliens and Immigration Law, you can submit an appeal to the Administrative Court within 75 days. This can include both your detention and deportation orders. You may also submit a Habeas Corpus application to the Supreme Court to challenge the length of your detention.
- If you believe you are unofficially detained in a specific area, you may submit a Habeas Corpus application to the Supreme Court to challenge the length of your detention.
You may apply for legal aid at the court which will be responsible to examine your challenge against the detention. This involves a short application and an assessment of your financial situation (a “means test”).
Act quickly. The appeal deadlines are strict. If you go over the deadlines, your appeal will probably be rejected unless you can prove that there are reasons outside of your control that made it impossible to submit the appeal within the deadlines.
The authorities responsible for your detention have the obligation to facilitate your transfer to the court in order to submit your appeal against your detention, and also to submit legal aid application if you wish to do so.