CIRÉ files urgent appeal at Council of State against exclusion of certain asylum seekers from reception
CIRÉ, together with partner organisations, has lodged an urgent appeal at the Council of State challenging a ministerial instruction that continues to exclude asylum seekers who have already been granted protection in another EU member state from reception facilities. The move follows a recent temporary suspension of the measure by the Constitutional Court. CIRÉ argues the instruction undermines judicial authority and the rule of law.
In July 2025, a new law restricted access to reception facilities for asylum seekers who had already been granted protection in another EU member state. On 26 February 2026, the Constitutional Court temporarily suspended this measure and referred questions to the Court of Justice of the European Union. Following this, Minister Annelies Van Bossuyt announced that the government would continue to apply the restriction on the basis of alternative legal grounds.
On 13 March 2026, CIRÉ and its partners lodged an urgent appeal at the Council of State, seeking to suspend the ministerial instruction. The appeal challenges the instruction as exceeding the minister’s authority and potentially disregarding the decisions of the highest Belgian courts. CIRÉ described the measure as a threat to the rule of law and a disregard for judicial oversight.
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