You cannot choose what country will examine your appli­ca­tion for asylum (the Dublin Regu­la­tion)

To apply for asylum in Sweden, you must either be in Sweden or at Sweden’s border. If it turns out that your application must be processed in accordance with the Dublin Regulation, the Swedish Migration Agency will decide whether your application is to be examined in Sweden or in another country.

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When you apply for asylum in Sweden, the Migration Agency begins by investigating whether it is Sweden or another EU country that is responsible for handling your application for asylum. If you have received a visa to enter another EU country, have certain types of residence permit in another EU country, or have applied for international protection (asylum) in another EU country on your way to Sweden, you may need to go back to that EU country. You can also have your application examined in another EU country if you want to be reunited with family members who are already there. These rules can be found in the Dublin Regulation.

If your application is to be examined under the Dublin Regulation, this is the procedure:

1

Application

  • You must answer questions about things like your name, citizenship and family, for example. You must hand in your passport or other identity documents to show who you are.
  • The Swedish Migration Agency will photograph you and take your fingerprints. If the check of your fingerprints shows that you have entered Europe without permission, that you have a visa to another country in Europe or that you have applied for asylum in another country in Europe, your application for asylum will be managed according to the Dublin Regulation. This means the Migration Agency will not investigate your reasons for asylum, but will first investigate which country is responsible for assessing your asylum application.
  • You will also get information whether your application will be managed according to the Dublin Regulation, and what that entails. You will also get information about practical issues, such as your right to housing, medical care and schooling for your children while you are waiting for a decision.

2

Application interview

  • An interpreter will help you answer questions about your health and your family, and how you got to Sweden.
  • You will have the opportunity to say what you think about your application potentially being assessed in another country. This interview is your only opportunity to talk to the Migration Agency and say why you think your application should be assessed in Sweden.
  • If you have family in Sweden, this might be a reason for the Migration Agency to decide that your application should be assessed in Sweden. In the same way, you have the option of having your application assessed in another country in Europe if you have family there.
  • If you already have a residence permit in another country in Europe, your application may be managed according to the Dublin Regulation as well.

3

Request for transfer to another country

  • After the interview, the Migration Agency will consider whether anything has emerged to make your application be considered in Sweden instead. If there are no such reasons, the Migration Agency will send a request for a transfer to the country responsible for investigating your reasons for asylum.

4

Request accepted

  • The other country has a set period to reply whether it accepts to take over responsibility for your asylum application or not. If it does not answer in time, this means it has accepted the Migration Agency’s transfer request.
  • When another country has accepted responsibility for your asylum application, this means that your rights as an asylum seeker will be covered in that country.

5

Transfer decision

  • If the other country accepts the request, the Migration Agency decides that you shall travel to the country responsible for assessing your asylum application.
  • You will get an appointment where the Migration Agency tells you of the decision.
  • A request for transfer to another country means that you have to travel there immediately. You can appeal the decision within three weeks. You can also request that the transfer is stopped while awaiting the court’s decision.

The Dublin Regulation

The Dublin Regulation applies to the 27 countries in the European Union: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and in Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

There are four brochures from the European Commission that explain different parts of the Dublin Regulation. The brochures are not updated with information on which countries belong to the EU.

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