By Olivia Alvano | Communications and Fundraising Manager
Our work over the past months has continued to demonstrate both the vital importance of free, independent legal assistance and the increasing difficulty of providing it in the current European context.
From August to December, ELIL supported over 2,000 people in Greece and nearly than 2,500 people in Poland.
In Greece, arrivals continued to rise, reaching 43,954 people in 2025. Throughout this period, our teams in Athens, Thessaloniki, Samos and Lesvos worked in a fragmented system marked by postponed interviews, barriers to registration, misdirected notifications and detention linked to difficulties accessing the asylum procedure. Our lawyers supported applicants to register their asylum claims and challenge unlawful detention resulting from procedural barriers. We assisted families to access secure housing, identified victims of trafficking and referred them to the appropriate protection mechanisms, and supported individuals in age assessment procedures, including accessing safe accommodation for those identified as minors. Across all locations, we continued to respond to a wide range of legal needs, including assisting applicants to communicate with the asylum authorities, navigate online platforms, and access the state legal aid system for appeals. Alongside this, our teams remained present in community centres and continued to provide legal assistance from the legal container in the camp on Lesvos.
The broader context in Greece remained unstable. The government’s suspension of asylum for arrivals from North Africa, introduced earlier in the year, ended in October, but its impact continues to be felt through prolonged detention and restricted access to procedures. New legislation on returns and age assessment has raised serious concerns about due process and safeguards for children. At the same time, several organisations reduced their presence, increasing gaps in legal assistance and interpretation.
In Poland, ELIL continued to confront serious violations of the right to seek asylum at the border with Belarus. We remain the only organisation with lawyers permanently present at the border, supporting people denied access to the asylum procedure and facing detention or deportation. As winter conditions slowed new arrivals, our work focused on advancing long delayed cases, challenging border guard inaction before domestic courts and preparing litigation before the European Court of Human Rights.
We also continued to assist refugees from Ukraine in Warsaw. With over 1.85 million Ukrainians registered in Poland, the need for legal assistance remains high. At the same time, many shelters have closed and access to financial support and long term residency options is being reduced. Our team continues to support refugees navigating these changes, alongside an increasingly diverse group of applicants seeking protection.
Across both countries, the trend remains clear. Arrivals continue while legal safeguards are weakened and political hostility toward refugees and migrants deepens.
Yet the presence of legal aid continues to make a decisive difference. Families have been reunited. Detention has been overturned. Children and survivors of violence have accessed protection. Each outcome reinforces the essential role of independent, free legal assistance.
With your support, we will continue to defend the right to asylum in courtrooms, camps and border zones.
The ELIL Team
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