The European Asylum Support Office (EASO) and border agency Frontex have prepared a toolkit for first-contact officials so they can better understand the rules governing asylum requests in Europe.

The materials, available on the EASO website, have been drawn up by experts from EU member states and are available in 19 languages.

'First-contact officials play a crucial role'

"As a first point of contact for third-country nationals reaching the EU, the first-contact officials play a crucial role in guaranteeing effective access to international protection", the EASO website explains. The aim is to support first-contact officials "in fulfilling their obligations to ensure access to the asylum procedure for those who may be in need of international protection".

The materials have been developed "for the first-contact officials at the borders or in detention facilities as specified in Article 6 APD recast, i.e.border guards (including coast guards), police, immigration authorities and personnel of detention facilities" and can be used at land borders, ports, transit areas and detention centres.

Numerous information tools

The various tools have been devised to assist in identifying asylum seekers and explain the procedure in Europe (provision of information, registration, referral and other assistance and procedural guarantees).

They include a practical guide on access to the asylum system that "provides information about the core obligations of the first-contact officials, the rights of persons in need of international protection and information on the procedural guarantees and support that is provided in the first-contact context".

There is also a poster that presents the ten most important points on accessing the asylum procedure, a pocket book featuring the main information in a small booklet suitable for operational purposes. As well, there is a leaflet providing quick access to relevant information about access to the asylum procedure by posing direct questions that first-contact officials may have.