Frontex began testing a new accelerated process of identifying and registering migrants on the Greek island of Lesbos today as part of its efforts to assist Greece in handling the thousands of people arriving at its shores each day.
The entire process takes place at a mobile office, set up as part of the implementation of the “hotspot” approach. Inside, a team composed of two Frontex guest officers works together with Greek authorities to register migrants and provide them with information on international protection.
More than 35 people, including several Syrian families, have already passed through the new facilities established by Frontex in Moria, where they were registered and had their fingerprints scanned electronically with a Eurodac device. At the end of the process, a European Asylum Support Office (EASO) official explained the possibility of requesting international protection and the relocation mechanism.
“The entire process takes place under one roof, which will speed up registration considerably. Registration opens the door to asylum procedures for people in need of international protection,” said Frontex Executive Director Fabrice Leggeri.
The newly launched pilot project will be tested over the next month to establish standard registration packages for additional registration centres in cooperation with EU agencies eu-LISA and EASO. Ultimately each will have four Frontex registration teams working continuously in shifts, 24 hours a day.
Nearly half a million migrants have arrived in Greece so far this year, with more than half coming to Lesbos.