Cyprus must find solutions to grant asylum seekers access to all state digital platforms, the Commissioner for Administration and Human Rights Maria Stylianou-Lottides said on Monday, after a report found they are unable to register for government services due to identification requirements.
The ombudswoman’s office was alerted by an NGO that asylum seekers cannot use Citizen Service Centres or Cyprus Post citizen centres to verify their identity profiles, preventing them from registering on the CY-Login government portal.
The digital exclusion cuts off asylum seekers’ access to basic rights including employment, according to the report.
They cannot register or renew registration at labour offices, whilst their access to benefits including maternity, child and sick leave allowances has been affected. They also face obstacles enrolling children in schools and participating in subsidy schemes.
The ombudswoman’s office also received an individual complaint from an asylum seeker who could not complete work permit procedures due to lack of CY-Login access, causing serious financial difficulties.
The Public Administration and Personnel Department director told the investigation that profile verification at service centres requires holders to present Cypriot identity cards, EU registration certificates or valid residence permits.
Asylum seekers cannot be served because they lack valid residence permits, even when presenting confirmation letters proving they have applied for international protection.
Representatives from the department attended an October 2022 meeting at the Information Technology Services Department alongside officials from the then Population Registry and Migration Department, the Asylum Service and postal services to discuss handling such cases. No updates or further instructions have been received since, according to the department.
The IT services deputy director said in an April letter that the Asylum Service and Migration Department told the meeting that asylum applicants’ identities are not verified during the initial application process, most commonly due to the absence of official documents.
Some applicants later change their details, including name, surname and date of birth.
Identity verification during asylum examination is thorough, and when applications are approved and applicants become beneficiaries of international protection, they receive residence permits and are registered in the Migration Department registry, the deputy director said.
Asylum seekers cannot be verified on CY-Login because they do not meet the criteria, she said, adding that they should be served through alternative channels such as in-person visits to relevant ministries, departments and services.
Whilst the Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy has authority over digital service development, decisions on alternative service channels including in-person service, handwritten applications or call centres, belong to the relevant ministries and departments, she said.
Alternative service channels should become mandatory alongside digital implementations, the deputy director said.
During the investigation, the NGO reported contacts with involved services to support affected individuals and related developments concerning practices some services have adopted to resolve problems asylum seekers face.
Social Insurance Services agreed to accept paper applications from asylum seekers without CY-Login access for maternity and sick leave benefits, according to the NGO. The Labour Department made similar arrangements to secure registration for asylum seekers without residence permits.
The NGO shared an email from the CY-Login Support Team stating that asylum applicants cannot use or have profiles on CY-Login according to the service’s policy.
The investigation showed asylum seekers without physical residence permits cannot complete profile verification to register on CY-Login, blocking them from government services and procedures requiring digital means that can no longer be completed in person, the ombudswoman said.
This causes delays in handling basic matters, affects access to rights and creates administrative difficulties or dependence on third parties.
The practice creates significant obstacles for asylum seekers exercising basic rights, particularly as public administration rapidly moves towards full digitalisation without providing alternative access routes, she said.
Whilst acknowledging challenges verifying asylum seekers’ identities, especially when official documents are absent or identity details declared on entry differ, the ombudswoman said these difficulties cannot justify depriving asylum seekers of access to public services now available almost exclusively through digital means.
The exclusive dependence of digital services on identity documents asylum seekers cannot hold creates indirect temporary exclusion that must be lifted through alternative access methods, she said.
She welcomed steps specific state services have taken applying effective non-digital channels, ensuring asylum seekers are not excluded from goods and services to which they are entitled regardless of physical residence permit possession.
Given the consequences digital exclusion of this population group can have on their access to education, the labour market, information, social integration and independent living, solutions of general application must be found and implemented, even outside digital channels, allowing asylum seekers to access all state platforms within government digital strategies, the ombudswoman said.
Involved public services must work closely together and with other relevant bodies to ensure comprehensive and effective management of the issue whilst maintaining necessary security and reliability levels, according to the report.
The report was sent to the Deputy Ministry of Migration and International Protection, the Deputy Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digital Policy, the Asylum Service and the Postal Services Department for action within their remits.
(information from CNA)