In order to be protected and regulate your status in Serbia you can apply for asylum. You can do that by going to the police station and requesting asylum, simply by saying “I want asylum” to police officers there. You can do that in any police station in the country.
Here is the address of the police station in Belgrade where you can request asylum:
Omladinskih brigada 1, Novi Beograd.
Here is the location on the Google maps: goo.gl/maps/Xmqq41minQukS9bc8
You can also request asylum in other cities, in the police station that has a Department for Foreigners (Uprava za strance). You can also request asylum if you are placed in a detention center or jail.
If the police refuses to allow you to seek asylum, you can contact one of the organization which provides free legal aid to asylum seekers. You can find the list of these organizations here: https://www.unhcr.org/rs/en/free-legal-aid
Have in mind that illegal entry (without visa and passport) and illegal stay in Serbia are misdemeanor acts and you can be detained or jailed because of it. Applying for asylum and being in asylum procedure is the only way how you can legalize your status in Serbia. This is why it is important that you are registered for asylum as soon as possible after entering the country.
REGISTRATION AT THE POLICE STATION
Registration is first step in asylum procedure and it is done in the police station. During the registration, police officer will take your personal information, your picture and fingerprints.
You will then receive the so called 72-hours-paper (“potvrda o registraciji” /which means confirmation on registration for asylum) at the police station. Confirmation on registration will have your personal data (name, last name, date of birth, country of origin) and at the bottom of the paper police officer will write in which camp you are referred to. This document is called “72-hours-paper” because you have 72 hours to go to that specific camp. If you do not go to the camp within 72 hours you will lose the status of an asylum seeker.
Also, have in mind that you cannot choose the camp in which you will be sent. But you will not be separated from your family, if you are traveling together, since all family members are always sent to the same camp.
The fingerprints taken at one police station are put into a national database, which is shared with all police stations in Serbia. So, if you seek asylum at one police station and you don’t go to the camp listed in the registration within those 72 hours, you will not be allowed to seek asylum again, because your fingerprints will come up at the police station. This means that after those 72 hours you will loose legal residency in Serbia and you can be detained or jailed, but also you will not have basic rights (right to accommodation, health care, right to work, etc).
**Please note: These fingerprints can NOT be used to deport you to Serbia according to the Dublin-regulation – this means your fingerprints will not be shared with other countries in Europe and you cannot be deported back to Serbia just for leaving your fingerprints there.
DOCUMENTS FOR ASYLUM SEEKERS
If you want to seek asylum in Serbia, it is very important that you reach the asylum centre within the 72 hours, or else your paper will not be valid anymore (and you will be undocumented again).
While having the 72-hours-paper will legalise your status and give you some rights, it does not count as an ID. You only get the ID once you have had your first interview in one of the centres for the asylum seekers. The ID you receive is the “Asylum ID Card” which identifies you as an asylum seeker in Serbia. With this card you are allowed to move on the whole territory of Serbia. This ID card has you picture in color, your personal data is written by hand and it has stamp of the Ministry of Interior.
Please note: You will also receive the so called “camp card” after being accommodated in the camp. This card is black and white, with your data printed on the paper. However, this card is NOT an official document, it doesn’t give you any rights and it’s not a guarantee of your status nor that you will have a secured place it that specific camp. You can still be detained or moved to other camps even if you are in possession of the “camp card”.
Further information on the asylum procedure in Serbia.
Please note: this material is based on laws that have been changed, so some of the information in there might be outdated.
arabic-information-for-people-seeking-asylum-in-serbia.pdf
english-information-for-people-seeking-asylum-in-serbia.pdf
farsi-information-for-people-seeking-asylum-in-serbia.pdf
french-information-for-people-seeking-asylum-in-serbia.pdf
urdu-information-for-people-seeking-asylum-in-serbia.pdf
ASYLUM PROCEDURE
Asylum procedure is conducted by the specialized department of the Ministry of Interior called Aylum Office. Their officers will conduct two interviews with you and will bring an official decision to approve or reject your asylum in Serbia.
These interviews are held in the camp and you will be provided with interpreter for your native language.The first interview is organized so that you can submit the asylum application. Asylum application is a form of 26 questions that everybody has to fill. Inspector from Asylum Office should organize this interview within 15 days upon the registration. If they don’t organize the interview, you can fill the form of asylum application and send it by post to Asylum Office within 8 days. It is recommended that you contact one of the organizations that provides free legal aid to assist you with this.
The second interview is called “asylum hearing” and this interview lasts for several hours. Police inspector will ask you to explain all details about the reasons why you fled your home country and potential consequences if you are sent back. You should also bring any proof or evidence that you have from your home country that can support your testimony.
You have the right to free legal aid during the asylum procedure, which means that a lawyer is assigned to your case, who will guide you through each step of the procedure.
If you want this support get in contact with one of the organizations that provides free legal aid in Serbia. You can find their contact here: https://www.unhcr.org/rs/en/free-legal-aid
After you have completed both asylum interviews you only have to wait for the official decision from the Asylum Office. The Law says that you should get the decision on your asylum request in 3 months, but this is rarely the case. Normally it takes much longer - around 10-12 months.
While you are in the asylum procedure you have the right to free accommodation in the camp, food and clothes within the camps, health care, elementary and high school education, legal aid. You can also work after 6 months from the moment when you have submitted an asylum application.
If you get a positive answer to your request, you will have a refugee status in Serbia and a five-year permit to stay in Serbia. If they grant you subsidiary protection you will get a permit to stay for one year, which will be renewed for another year by the police if your home country is still unsafe.
If the decision of the authorities is negative about your request you have the right to appeal within 15 days. In this case get in contact with your legal representative or lawyer.
RIGHTS OF ASYLUM SEEKERS AND REFUGEES
If you apply for asylum in Serbia, you will have the following rights:
- Legal residency and freedom to move across the country – this means that you can not be detained or deported from Serbia until the end of the asylum procedure;
- Right to accommodation in one of the official camps in Serbia, where you will be provided with clothes, shoes and hygiene products;
- Right to stay in private accommodation, but you will have to find the apartment and cover all the costs on your own. Please have in mind that your move from the camp to the private accommodation has to be approved by the Asylum Office first.
- Financial social help, but only if you are staying in a private accommodation and not in one of the camps;
- Right to healthcare, which means that you can be treated in hospitals and primary health centers both for urgent health matters and for chronical illnesses:
- Right to primary and secondary education, both for children and for adults;
- Right to free legal aid, which means that you can have a lawyer who will represent you in the asylum procedure and who will communicate with Asylum Office on your behalf;
- Right to work after 6 months from the moment when you submit asylum application;
- Right to personal documents – Asylum Office will issue you the ID card after you apply for asylum. This ID card is renewed every 6 months.
If your asylum application is accepted and you are granted refugee status or subsidiary protection, you will have a right to travel document for refugees.
Important! These rights are granted only to asylum seekers, which means that if you are not in the asylum procedure you will not have access to any of these rights. People who are not in the asylum procedure (those who are “transiting through Serbia”) only have a right to urgent medical care which is provided only in the emergency centers within the hospitals and only in life-threatening situations.
RIGHTS OF PEOPLE WHO ARE GRANTED REFUGEE STATUS AND SUBSIDIARY PROTECTION
For people who have received asylum status, UNHCR has increased its efforts to find people jobs and support education. There is also financial assistance to rent private accommodation for people in the first years after they received asylum status. People who are granted refugee status or subsidiary protection can get refugee passport. And only people who are granted refugee status have a right to family reunification, which means that they can bring their family to Serbia.