A Syrian national, born in 1996, was granted international protection in Greece and further travelled to Germany in June 2018 and applied again for asylum there. The Federal Office for Migration and Asylum (BAMF) rejected the application as inadmissible and appeals before lower courts were unsuccessful. The appeals were dismissed on grounds that the applicant would not face a significant risk of being subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment contrary to Article 4 of the EU Charter or Article 3 of the ECHR and the high threshold of severity was not reached.
The Federal Administrative Court found that the Higher Administrative Court of Hesse correctly assessed the situation based on the current situation in Greece and the individual circumstances. Thus, it found that it was unlikely for a single, healthy and young men, beneficiary of international protection in Greece, not to be able to secure minimum livelihood. As for accommodation, the court noted that even if they cannot secure a temporary place, they are advised to find a sleeping place, if necessary, in makeshift accommodations, shipping containers, de facto tolerated settlements, or other basic camps with minimal accessible sanitary facilities. The court mentioned that to secure a place an applicant would need to establish early contact with one of the numerous human rights aid organisations and/or ethnic groups which can cover their basic needs, including food, through their own employment, initially at least in the informal economy. The court considered that the applicant could find additional support provided by aid organisations and other third parties.
The court affirmed that single, employable, and non-vulnerable male, beneficiary of international protection currently would not face a threat of degrading or inhumane living conditions upon return to Greece, entailing a violation of Article 4 of the EU Charter. It concluded that it could be expected that the person could recourse, if necessary, to emergency shelters beyond those provided by public authorities and social organisations.
The court reiterated that it had similar findings in a previous case in Applicants v Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bundesamt für Migration und Flüchtlinge‚ BAMF) (16 April 2025).