The Justice Ministry said Wednesday it plans to soon decentralize much of its refugee application process, aiming to fast-track rejections amid concerns of a rise in illegitimate requests.
Under the current system, local immigration bureaus tentatively categorize applicants into four categories: Group A, meaning they are likely to be given refugee status under the 1951 Refugee Convention; Group B, or those who cite reasons that are clearly not applicable under the convention; Group C, or those who reapply citing the same reasons that were earlier rejected; and Group D, others.
The planned revisions would allow local immigration chiefs to determine whether to grant or deny refugee status to applicants in groups B and C, which accounted for about 40 percent of all requests filed last year, ministry officials said.