News reports mentioned that The German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) has issued internal instructions suspending the Dublin procedure in respect of Syrian nationals. Under the Dublin Regulation, a Member State may make use of the “sovereignty clause” to voluntarily assume responsibility for processing asylum applications for which it is not otherwise responsible under the criteria of the Regulation.
According to the instructions, dated 21 August 2015, Dublin procedures that have already been initiated in relation to Syrians are to be cancelled, in order for Germany to become the Member State responsible for processing their claims. This entails that enforceable return orders for Dublin transfers to other countries are also to be revoked. Newly applying Syrian and Palestinian Syrian asylum seekers are to be immediately channeled into the regular asylum procedure and will not be given the Dublin questionnaires usually provided to applicants, under the condition of proving by an ID or a Passport. The activists see that the German procedure is temporary to alleviate the pressure on the border areas which are crowded with thousands of immigrants especially from Syria, who escaped the ongoing war in Syria.