|Published on: 10th September 2026|Categories: News|
ECRE has published a comparative report on the legal framework for the detention of people seeking international protection in 21 EU member states and 5 non-EU European countries.
Information was drawn from the Asylum Information Database (AIDA) which contains detailed information on asylum procedures, reception conditions, detention and the content of international protection in 27 countries.
AIDA country reports are written by national experts in co-operation with various stakeholders, including NGOs, lawyers and national authorities, and edited and verified by ECRE. AIDA is widely used by both European and national policymakers, legal practitioners and courts.
The comparative report is focused on the following topics:
- Understanding the concepts of ‘detention’, ‘de facto detention’ and ‘restrictions of freedom of movement’
- The legal framework of detention in the context of asylum procedures, namely on the lawfulness (and non-arbitrariness) of detention, alternatives to detention and the detention of vulnerable asylum applicants
- The procedural safeguards regarding detention of asylum applicants, including the duration of detention, the judicial review of detention and the available legal assistance to access it
- The legal framework applicable to detention in the context of return procedures
It should be read together with the comparative report on places and conditions of detention of asylum applicants.
The comparative report on the legal framework for the detention of people seeking asylum is available here and the comparative report on places and conditions of detention is available here.
For more information about the AIDA database or to read other AIDA reports, please visit the AIDA website.
