COUNTRY FACTSHEET: PORTUGAL 2014

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1 COUNTRY FACTSHEET: PORTUGAL 2014 EUROPEAN MIGRATION NETWORK 1. Introduction This EMN Country Factsheet provides a factual overview of the main policy developments in migration and international protection in Portugal during 2014, including latest statistics. 2. Common European Asylum System In 2014 Portugal introduced legislative measures to align its national legislation to the Common European Asylum System. For example, the new Act 26/2014 of May 5 introduced amendments to Act 27/2008 of June 30, establishing the conditions and procedures for granting of asylum or subsidiary protection and the statuses of asylum applicant, refugee and subsidiary protection. The act transposed the recast Qualification (2011/95/EU), Asylum Procedures (2013/32/EU) and Reception (2013/33/EU) Directives. The new act also reflected the adoption of the recast EURODAC Regulation (603/2013) and Regulation No. 604/2013 establishing the criteria and mechanisms for determining the Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection. The new legal framework overall improved the international protection procedure, both on the administrative and judicial phases. For example, the examination of applications for international protection was extended to a maximum of 30 days; nevertheless the period regarding the expedited procedure was reduced. Judicial decisions were also rendered in a shorter period, as national law provides that appeals regarding international protection shall be handled in Court as urgent, as these are an order for protection of rights, freedoms and guarantees. Also in 2014, Portugal received 14 refugees under its quota resettlement programme. The main countries of origin were Iran, Cameroon, Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo. 3. Unaccompanied Minors and other Vulnerable Groups New measures were implemented to strengthen the procedural guarantees for vulnerable people. Measures provide that the competent authority must identify applicants with special needs and such needs shall be assessed right after they submit their application and within a reasonable period of time. On unaccompanied minors (UAMs), measures provide that UAMs shall always be represented by the body/authority appointed by the Court and their representative shall be informed of the statements. As part of the age assessment procedure, if there is still uncertainly regarding the age of the applicant, the competent authority may conduct medical tests to determine his/her age, however consent must be provided by the applicant s representative to undertake such tests. 4. European Policy on Legal migration and Integration 4.1. PROMOTING LEGAL MIGRATION CHANNELS The Ministry of Foreign Affairs provides information on legal migration for third country nationals (TCNs) in the website which is also available in English ECONOMIC MIGRATION In 2014 Portugal continued to implement measures aimed at addressing the growing challenges in terms of security and regulation of migration, which are particularly important given the effects of economic recession the Member State has been experiencing in the past years. Measures included the maintenance of the non-approval indicative global quota for granting residence visas for admitting third-country nationals for purposes of carrying out a paid professional activity, among others. Migration & Home Affairs

2 Regarding students and researchers, Portugal intends to strengthen its position as a privileged destination for higher education, especially in Portuguese language. As part of this objective, in May 2014 the Strategic Guidelines for Higher Education were launched. The Guidelines provide six different priorities including a specific measure on Internationalisation of Portuguese higher education which has set three main objectives: To grant International Student Status to Portuguese higher education institutions (HEIs) providing a specific scheme of access and entry to attract foreign students; To define an internationalisation strategy for Portuguese HEIs, including distance learning; and The creation of the website Study in Portugal to promote the internationalisation strategy. The international recruitment of teachers and researchers is also provided in the Strategic Guidelines. The latter has been considered as one of the most relevant policy documents on the scope of the strengthening of Portugal s position as a preferential destination for higher education. In March 2014, the Decree 10/2014 was introduced to approve the Agreement on visa granting for students who are nationals of Member States of the Community of Portuguese-speaking countries FAMILY REUNIFICATION No policy developments were reported under this policy area in INTEGRATION In order to promote the integration of immigrants through social participation, a legislative initiative of the Presidency of the Azores Regional Government was introduced by the Regional Regulatory Decree 3/2014/A which amended Regional Regulatory Decree 30/2002/A, of November 22. The new decree established the Regional Advisory Council for Immigration with the purpose of ensuring the participation and cooperation of immigrant associations, social partners and social solidarity institutions to define and coordinate policies on social integration and fight against immigrant exclusion. During 2014 the Immigration and Borders Service (SEF) Contact Centre continued to carry out activities aimed at facilitating the contact between third-country nationals and SEF, and hence promoting the reception and integration of migrant communities. In addition SEFs programmes establishing principles and guidelines for the integration of students of primary, secondary and recurrent education who do not have Portuguese as mother tongue (e.g. Portuguese as mother tongue (Português como língua maternal)), continued during The programmes SEF in motion (SEF em Movimento) and SEF goes to school (SEF vai à escola) also continued its activities along The latter aimed facilitating the relationship with vulnerable groups, as well as to facilitate the regularisation of documents of foreign minors who attend primary school. The V National Plan for Gender Equality, Citizenship and Non-Discrimination was also adopted. The Plan sets out the adoption of 70 measures organised around seven strategic areas including social inclusion and ageing. Portugal also introduced, by means of Order 176/2014 of September 11, new measures to regulate several aspects regarding the test on Portuguese language, for purposes of acquiring citizenship MANAGING MIGRATION AND MOBILITY 1 In 2014 the Portuguese main border posts, such as airports and sea ports were provided with integrated equipment to collect biometric data in accordance to the requirements of the Visa Information System (VIS). Training to inspectors was also provided, for example for whose working at the Lisbon airport EXTERNAL DIMENSION OF EU MIGRATION POLICY The Strategic Plan for Migration which implementation is foreseen for a six-year period ( ) envisages five priorities such as immigrant integration, promotion of the integration of new citizens, coordination of migration flows, strengthening legal migration and the quality of migration-related services, as well as the promotion, monitoring and assistance to the return of emigrants. 5. Irregular Migration and Return 5.1. THE FIGHT AGAINST FACILITATION OF IRREGULAR MIGRATION The adoption of the III National Plan to Prevent and Combat Trafficking in Human Beings falls within the international commitments made by, Portugal, more specifically in the context of the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the European Union and the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries, on the issue of prevent and fight against smuggling. As a preventive measure, during the 2014 periods where there is a higher number of travellers/passengers (IATA summer), Portugal reinforced its human resources at border posts. Furthermore, border officers also participated in several training provided on border security measures. 1 Managing migration and mobility refers to the following themes: visa policy, Schengen governance and border monitoring. 2

3 During 2014 Portugal also continued its investment to strengthen the security of identification documents, as well as in training provided to SEF inspectors in matters of security of documents and document fraud. 6. Actions against Trafficking in Human Beings Measures implemented throughout 2014 included actions undertaken as part of the III National Plan to Prevent and Combat Trafficking in Human Beings The Plan provides, amongst other issues, for the strengthening of inspection actions with a preventive character, with a special focus on possible areas of exploitation of victims of trafficking in human beings. In addition, the plan also sets actions to provide specific training for border officers, to raise awareness on trafficking in human beings matters and on the identification of victims; some measures also aimed at promoting initial and/or continuous training on trafficking for purposes of labour and sexual exploitation for inspectors of working conditions. The Immigration and Borders Service (SEF) together with the Authority for Working Conditions (ACT) also organised awareness raising initiatives on working conditions inspections as well as a series of conferences. STATISTICAL ANNEX The Statistical Annex provides an overview of the latest available statistics for Portugal on aspects of migration and asylum ( ), including residence, asylum, unaccompanied minors, irregular migration, return and visas. Where statistics are not yet available, this is indicated in the Annex as N/I and when statistics are not applicable, this is indicated as N/A. Family Planning Association (APF) teams were also established in the North, Centre, Lisbon and Alentejo regions and protocols were also signed with various organisations, including criminal police bodies, which embody and consolidate the Support and Protection Network for Victims of Trafficking and the National Model of Identification of victims (detectionidentification-integration). Potential and presumed trafficking for labour exploitation of adults was also reported in These concerned potential cases of trafficking in the agriculture sector, the majority identified in the Alentejo region, in the olive harvest. As a result, inspection actions were carried out by the Unit against the Trafficking in Persons of the Immigration and Borders Service, as well as awareness raising actions. Finally, in relation to cooperation with third-countries, Portugal established contacts with National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons and Other Related Matters (NAPTIP) in Nigeria, with a view to sign a memorandum of understanding to enable a more extensive operational cooperation between both countries as regards the fight against trafficking in human beings. 3

4 Statistical Annex: Immigration and Asylum in Portugal ( ) 1. COMMON EUROPEAN ASYLUM SYSTEM Figure 1: Asylum applications as a share of the total population in Portugal, EU average and EU high and low ( ) Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_asyappctza), data extracted 20/07/2015 Figure 2: Number of asylum applications and as a share of the total number of applications in the EU ( ) Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_asyappctza), data extracted 21/07/2015 Table 1: Asylum applications: Top five third-country nationalities ( ) Nationality Nr % of % of % of % of Nationality Nr Nationality Nr Nationality Nr total total total total Guinea 45 16% Guinea 65 22% Syria % Ukraine % Leone 25 6% Somalia 25 9% Nigeria 30 10% Guinea 80 16% Morocco 25 6% Pakistan 25 6% Sierra 25 6% Cote d'ivoire 20 7% Bissau 20 7% Nigeria 35 7% Mali 20 5% Nigeria 20 7% Guinea 20 7% Syria 20 7% Senegal 35 7% Syria 20 5% DRC Belarus 15 5% Mali 25 5% Angola 15 3% 15 5% Cote DRC 15 5% Colombia Pakistan 25 5% d'ivoire 15 3% 15 5% Sri Lanka 15 5% Sri-Lanka 15 3% Bissau 10 4% Belarus, 10 3% Bissau 20 4% DRC 10 2% Guinea 10 4% Colombia 10 3% Guinea 10 2% Iran 10 4% Cote Guinea 20 4% Pakistan 10 4% 10 3% d'ivoire Russia 10 4% Iran 10 2% Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_asyappctza), data extracted 21/07/2015; DRC= Democratic Republic of the Congo 4

5 Figure 3: Asylum applications: Top five third-country nationalities as a share of EU total per given nationality (2014) Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_asyappctza), data extracted 21/07/2015 Table 2: Asylum applications - First instance decisions by outcome ( ) Total decisions Positive decisions Refugee status Of which: Subsidiary protection Humanitarian reasons Negative decisions N/I N/I N/I N/I 115 Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_asydcfsta), data extracted 22/07/2015. Figures 4-7: Asylum applications - First instance decisions by outcome ( ) Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_asydcfsta), data extracted 22/07/2015 Figure 8: Negative decision rate for the top five nationalities of applicants at the first instance in comparison with EU for the same given nationality (2014) Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_asydcfsta), data extracted 23/07/2015 Figure 9: Third-country nationals resettled Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_asyresa), data extracted 23/07/2015 5

6 2. UNACCOMPANIED MINORS Figure 10: Unaccompanied minors applying for asylum ( ) Table 3: Unaccompanied minors ( ) Unaccompanied minors (total) N/A N/A N/A N/A Unaccompanied minor asylum applicants Source: Eurostat Asylum applicants considered to be unaccompanied minors by citizenship, age and sex Annual data (rounded) [migr_asyunaa], data extracted 23/07/ EUROPEAN POLICY ON LEGAL MIGRATION AND INTEGRATION Figure 11: First residence permits, by reason ( ) Source: Eurostat (migr_resfirst), data extracted 23/07/2015 Table 4: First residence permits: Top five third-country nationalities ( ) 1.Brazil 13,191 1.Brazil 12,267 1.Brazil 8,023 N/I 2.Cape Verde 5,097 2.Cape Verde 4,053 2.Cape Verde 3,130 N/I 3.Guinea-Bissau 2,131 3.Guinea-Bissau 1,994 3.China 2,233 N/I 4.Ukraine 1,789 4.Angola 1,898 4.Angola 1,724 N/I 5.China 1,728 5.China 1,687 5.Guinea-Bissau 1,499 N/I Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_resfirst), data extracted 23/07/2015 Figure 13: Resident population of third-country nationals as a share of total population in Portugal, EU average, EU high and low ( ) Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_pop1ctz), data extracted 23/07/2015 6

7 4. IRREGULAR MIGRATION AND RETURN Table 5: Number of third-country nationals refused entry at external borders ( ) Third country nationals: Refused entry at external borders 1,795 1, Found to be illegally present 9,230 9,110 5,155 4,530 Ordered to leave 8,570 8,565 5,450 3,845 Returned following an order to leave 1,245 1,330 1, Source: Eurostat migration statistics (migr_eirfs)(migr_eipre)(migr_eiord), data extracted 24/07/2015 Table 6: Third-country nationals returned ( ) Returned as part of forced return measures Returned voluntarily Returned through an Assisted Voluntary Return Programme , * Source: Commission Staff Working Document -Accompanying the 5th Annual Report on Immigration and Asylum 2013, *2014 data obtained from the EMN Annual Policy Report on Immigration and Asylum 2014, Statistic Annex 5. SECURING EUROPE S EXTERNAL BORDERS Table 7: Number of Schengen visas applications ( ) Uniform visas (short-stay visas) 142, , , ,216 Source: DG Migration and Home Complete statistics on short-stay visas issued by the Schengen States Figure 14: Uniform visa applications received in Portugal as a share of the total number of uniform visa applications in all Schengen states consulates ( ) Source: DG Migration and Home affairs Complete statistics on short-stay visas issued by the Schengen States Table 8: Top five countries in which the highest number of visa applications for Portugal was lodged Country Number Country Number Country Number Country Number Angola 41,551 Angola 42,748 Angola 43,165 Angola 61,240 Russia 29,394 Russia 32,627 Russia 37,594 Russia 32,210 Cape Verde 9,067 Cape Verde 9,063 China 9,740 China 14,241 Ukraine 7,071 Mozambique 6,620 Cape Verde 9,642 Cape Verde 13,360 Senegal 6,368 Ukraine 6,549 Mozambique 7,523 Mozambique 8,461 Source: DG Migration and Home affairs 6. ACTIONS AGAINST TRAFFICKING IN HUMAN BEINGS Table 9: Number of traffickers arrested as suspects and traffickers convicted * Convictions N/I N/I N/I N/I Arrested / otherwise involved in a criminal proceeding N/I N/I N/I N/I Source: *EMN Annual Policy Report on Immigration and Asylum 2014, Statistic Annex 7

8 7. ASYLUM AND MIGRATION EU FUNDING SOURCES ( AND ) Table 10: Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) allocation to Portugal in euro per area Areas AMIF Asylum 6,555,287 Legal Migration and Integration 18,921,175 Return 3,867,225 Technical Assistance 2,802,690 Special cases (resettlement/transfer) 1,080,000 TOTAL 33,856,377 Source: DG Migration and Home affairs Table 11: Internal Security Fund (ISF) allocation to Portugal in euro per area Areas ISF ISF Borders 18,900,023 ISF SA Frontex 234,000 ISF SA Consular cooperation 859,523 ISF Borders Emergency Assistance 18,693,124 ISF Police 38,686,670 TOTAL 33,856,377 Source: DG Migration and Home affairs Table 12: SOLID funds allocation in euro and share of total funds allocated to Portugal ( ) SOLID FUNDS TOTAL European Refugee Fund (ERF) N/A 441,560 (0.6%) 456, , , , ,358 (0.4%) 2,818,592 European Return Fund (RF) N/A 901,700 (1.6%) 933,501 (1.5%) 943,614 1,173,663 (1.1%) 1,772,610 2,180,463 7,905,551 European Fund for the Integration of TCN (EIF) 1,234,523 (1.9%) 1,640,870 2,159,084 (2.2%) 2,410,686 (2.2%) 2,818,302 3,797,491 (2.3%) 3,661,002 (2%) 17,721,957 External Borders Fund (EBF) 3,020,245 2,935,000 (2.2%) 3,374,227 2,581,897 (1.3%) 3,156,378 (1.3%) 3,978,321 4,902,833 23,948,902 (1.5%) Source: DG Migration and Home affairs 8