Greek lawyers who are paid by the government to provide free advisory services to asylum seekers will be given a cash bonus if they manage to talk certain migrants out of submitting an asylum application, and opt to return to their home countries instead. A similar scheme is also being introduced in Italy, raising questions about the impartiality of people in the legal profession.
A ministerial decision made public on July 2 states that Greek lawyers working for the government, advising asylum seekers on their rights for free, can be rewarded with a bonus if they convince asylum seekers from certain countries to change their minds on lodging their case.
Lawyers will receive a bonus of 250 euros (plus sales tax) for each migrant they advise who decides to return to their home country instead of filing an asylum claim; this is in addition to the standard fee of 160 euros (plus sales tax) for each case where they provide legal assistance, reports the Greek news platform ekathimerini.
The monetary incentive for lawyers was introduced through a joint ministerial decision by the ministries of migration, finance and justice, published in Greece's Government Gazette on June 30. The decision implements provisions of a new asylum law adopted by parliament as part of the country's alignment with the EU's Asylum and Migration Pact.
The law makes provisions for free legal guidance for asylum seekers during the examination of their applications, with those services made available until an initial decision is issued.
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Same advice to be given to all migrants
The free legal services offered under the new law will include information on the asylum process, rights and obligations of asylum seekers, deadlines that have to be met, and information on appealing negative decisions; however, the help given will be of a generic nature and will not include specialized legal advice bespoke to each case.
Neither will those who make use of the free legal advice be given help with filling in their applications, nor with anything related to asylum interviews. Cases with a low chance of asylum will also receive free advice on voluntary return programs.
Applicants who are already receiving legal assistance from a lawyer of their choosing, however, not be eligible for the free service.
The new law also specifies that lawyers appointed to provide free legal services will not be allowed to represent the same asylum seekers on a paid basis at a later stage of the asylum process.
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Rise in arrivals of people from 'safe' countries
According to the Greek government, the monetary incentive to dissuade certain migrants from following through with the asylum process comes in response to a rise in migrants arriving in Greece from countries of origin that are considered to be safe.
These people generally tend to stand a low chance of receiving asylum; however, issuing a negative decision in such cases can still take several months, during which Greek authorities would be responsible for looking after these migrants, providing them with shelter, food and clothing.
Even expedited cases under the new EU pact on Migration and Asylum could require up to 60 days of public funds during the processing stages of an asylum claim, which will mainly affect people from countries of origin with a lower recognition rate than 20 percent.
Greece says that there has been an increase in the number of such economic migrants in recent months, especially those coming from Egypt and Bangladesh, whose applications for protection status are prone to being rejected.
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In the first six months of 2026, more than 15,000 migrants have irregularly entered Greece by sea, with the majority of them journeying across the Mediterranean Sea on small boats from the North African coast to the southern Greek island of Crete.
In 2025, roughly 49,000 people managed to enter Greece irregularly, both by land and by sea.
While the majority of migrants hope to ultimately travel further into central Europe, Greece remains at the forefront of migrant arrivals in the EU, alongside Spain and Italy.
Similar scheme in Italy causes division among lawyers
A similar scheme of incentivizing lawyers to convince their migrant clients to go back to their home countries is being introduced in Italy, where the government included the motion in its latest security bill.
The Guardian reported that under the Italian plan, lawyers who talk their foreign-born clients into accepting voluntary repatriation will receive a bonus of an estimated 615 euros in each case.
Italy has earmarked 246,000 euros for the payments in 2026, with the funding nearly doubling for the following two years.
Italy's national bar council has criticized the scheme, saying that lawyers are obliged to achieve the best possible results for their clients "in full freedom and independence" and not seek any outcome desired by the government.
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