Author
International protection permits for both refugee status and subsidiary protection are granted for a period of 5 years.[1]
The application is submitted to the territorially competent Questura of the place where the person has a registered domicile.
A common problem regarding the issuance of residence permits for international protection beneficiaries is the lack of a registered domicile address, which must be provided to the police. Proof of domicile has to be attached to the application submitted to the Questura, but some beneficiaries of international protection do not have a fixed address to provide and Questure often reject issuance or renewal requests submitted by beneficiaries who lack a real domicile and provide either a fictitious/virtual residence or a registered legal address at an organisation’s office.[2]
As mentioned in previous AIDA reports, to discourage such practice, in 2015, the Ministry of Interior issued a circular remarking that the law does not require beneficiaries of international protection to attach a registered address certificate to the residence permit issuance or renewal request being sufficient a declaration by the person concerning their domicile is considered sufficient.[3] In 2019, the Civil Court of Rome had accepted an urgent appeal submitted by a beneficiary of subsidiary protection on the matter.[4]
However, in ASGI’s experience, Police offices in the entire national territory still request proof of domicile to renew residence permits for beneficiaries of international protection. Some Police Offices even request proof of residence, not only of domicile, on the national territory to issue the permit of stay. This policy, combined with the extreme difficulty with finding proper accommodations for foreign citizens, makes the procedures for issuing permits of stay slower and more difficult.[5]
The renewal of the residence permit for asylum is done by filling out the appropriate form and sending it through the post office. After the application for renewal has been submitted, people have to wait a long time up to several months to know the outcome of the request and to obtain the new permit. The delay seems to be due to the chronic problems of organization and lack of personnel of Immigration Offices throughout Italy, but in the past two years the waiting time for the whole procedure can reach sixteen to eighteen months, as for other categories of permits. During this time, the beneficiary of international protection holds only a receipt, released by the post office as proof of the renewal application, which in theory substitutes the permit for every purpose. In practice however, after the first months, the receipt is not considered a valid document and beneficiaries of international protection experience great difficulties, for example, obtaining or renewing a work contract, renewing the registration to the national healthcare system, or obtaining a driving license. In 2024, the Ministry of Interiors issued a circular stating that the receipt has a validity of 9 months. As a consequence of the circular, after the ninth month many beneficiaries (as well as the holders of other permits) experience many difficulties and obstacles in maintaining access to the benefits connected to their status.
According to the law, the residence permit for subsidiary protection can be renewed after verification that the conditions imposed in Article 14 of the Qualification Decree are still satisfied.[6] The application is sent back to the administrative Territorial Commission that decided on the original asylum application, which has to assess the renewal request and either express a favourable opinion to the renewal or send the file to the National Asylum Commission, which is responsible for the proceedings concerning the cessation or withdrawal of protection status. The Territorial Commission also considers information provided by the police concerning crimes committed during the person’s stay in Italy, while assessing the renewal request. In practice, these permits are usually renewed and the main reason why renewal may not happen is that the procedure to withdraw protection status started due to the beneficiary having committed a serious crime.
Another frequent reason permits are not renewed is evidence that the refugee has had contacts with their embassy or has returned to the country of origin, even if for a short period. Sometimes, on this basis, the non-renewal procedure has been initiated even for subsidiary protection beneficiaries. To this regard it has to be underlined that L. 132/2018 which amended Decree Law 113/2018, introduced Article 15 (2 – ter) to the Qualification Decree, according to which, for the purpose of terminating the needs of subsidiary protection, “any return to the country of origin is relevant, if not justified by serious and proven reasons”. Following legal action initiated by ASGI the cessation of international protection by NAC in a few of such cases has been cancelled, even if the provision is still in place.
Some Questure illegitimately require that subsidiary protection beneficiaries present their passport to be issued their residence permit. On 31 January 2020, the Civil Court of Brescia upheld the appeal lodged by an ASGI lawyer for a Nigerian beneficiary of subsidiary protection to whom the Questura of Bergamo refused to issue the residence permit because he did not have a passport.[7]
On 10 March 2022, the Civil Court of Brescia upheld the appeal lodged by the applicant, a beneficiary of subsidiary protection, clarifying how, according to the Article 23 of the Qualification Directive, national implementing authorities are not given discretion as to additional requirements, not set in law, for the issuance of a residence permit for subsidiary protection beneficiaries.[8]
Special protection
Decree Law 130/2020 and L 173/2020 reintroduced the need to consider, in rejecting residence permits, the existence of constitutional and international obligations, and changed the substance of the special protection (protezione speciale) permits which could be granted when the hypothesis of non-expulsion or refoulement arises.[9] Decree Law 130/2020 specified that the refoulement or expulsion of a person was not admitted when there are good reasons to believe that removal from the national territory involves a violation of the right to respect for their private and family life, unless it is necessary for national security reasons, public order and safety as well as health protection. It also stated that the nature and effectiveness of the family ties of the person concerned, their effective social insertion in Italy, the duration of their stay on the national territory as well as the existence of family, cultural or social ties with their country of origin, have to be taken into account.[10]
In such cases, special protection permits (protezione speciale) were granted, either through the international protection procedure or following the submission of a direct request to the Questura subject to a favourable opinion by the Territorial Commission.
Law 50/2023 has significantly changed previous rules, by deleting from Article 19 TUI any reference to the protection of private and family life. Even if these rights are covered by Article 8 of ECHR, this led Territorial Commissions to limit the number of cases in which national protection is recognised.[11]
- 50/2023 also cancelled the possibility to submit a direct request for a special protection permit to Questura.
Special protection permits have a duration of two years and are renewable – upon expression of a favourable opinion by the Territorial Commission.[12] L. 50/2023 also changed the duration of the special protection permit, reducing it to one year. This applies only to the permits requested after the entry into force of L. 50/2023.
Based on L. 50/2023, the permits to stay for special protection issued after the entry into force of the new law, will be not convertible in labour residence permits.[13] However, a transitional regime was introduced, so that the new provisions on special protection permits do not apply to all pending cases before the Territorial Commissions, and to requests submitted to the Questore before the coming into force of the law itself (6 May 2023).[14]
During 2023, in several cases the Administrative regional Courts stated that special protection is unique regardless of the authority that recognises it (Territorial Commission or Questore) and therefore there must be no difference between the convertibility regimes. (see the decisions[15] mentioned in the Regular procedure).
[1] Article 23(1) and (2) Qualification Decree.
[2] Please refer to CSD Diaconia Valdese, Monitoring report on illegitimate practices by Questure, July 2021, available in Italian at: https://bit.ly/3CPIo1S.
[3] Ministry of Interior Department of Civil Liberties and Immigration, Circular 18 May 2015, Beneficiaries of international protection – Domicile and residence permit renewal request, available at: https://bit.ly/3tgckB9.
[4] Civil Court of Rome, 25 June 2019, decision available in Italian at: https://bit.ly/36qfUiY.
[5] Experience of ASGI lawyers with different Questure – Police Headquarters on the national territory
[6] Article 23(2) Qualification Decree.
[7] Civil Court of Brescia, Decision 18250/2019, 31 January 2020, available in Italian at: https://bit.ly/3u84JDZ.
[8] Civil Court of Brescia, Decision of 10 March 2022.
[9] Articles 19(1) as amended by Decree Law 130/2020 and L. 173/2020.
[10] Article 32 (3) Procedure Decree and Article 19 (1.1) TUI as amended by Decree Law 130/2020 and L 173/2020.
[11] According to Eurostat, humanitarian permits recognised in 2023 are 380 less than those granted in 2022 (see Eurostat data available at: https://acesse.dev/Il39P). However, these statistics should be read keeping in mind that the overall recognition rate is significantly decreased in 2023 going from 47%in 2022 to 37%.
[12] Article 32(3) Procedure Decree, as amended by Decree Law 113/2018 and L 132/2018 and later by Decree Law 130/2020 and L 173/2020.
[13] L 50/2023 repealed Article 6 (1 bis a) referring to special protection permits among the permits which can be converted into labour permits.
[14] Article 7 (2) and (3) DL. 20/023 converted with amendments by L 50/2023.
[15] Administrative Court for Tuscany region, interim decision no. 24/2024 of 10 January 2024; Administrative Court for Piedmont Interim decision no. 10/2024 of 12 January 2024; Administrative Court for Marche region, decision no. 00913/2023 of 28 December 2023; Administrative Court for Friuli Venezia Giulia region, decision no. 87/2024 of 27 February 2024.