Procedural fairness in automated asylum procedures: Fundamental rights for fundamental challenges

Abstract

In response to the increasing digitalization of asylum procedures, this paper examines the legal challenges surrounding the use of automated tools in refugee status determination (RSD). Focusing on the European Union (EU) context, where interoperable databases and advanced technologies are employed to streamline asylum processes, the paper asks how EU fundamental rights can address the challenges that automation raises. Through a comprehensive analysis of EU law and several real-life cases, the paper focuses on the relationship between procedural fairness and the use of automated tools to provide evidence in RSD. The paper illustrates what standards apply to automated systems based on a legal doctrinal analysis of EU primary and secondary law and emerging case law from national courts and the CJEU. The article contends that the rights to privacy and data protection enhance procedural fairness in asylum procedures and shows how they can be leveraged for increased protection of asylum seekers and refugees. Moreover, the paper also claims that asylum authorities carry a new pivotal responsibility as the medium between the technologies, asylum seekers and their rights.