Implementation of the EU-Turkey Statement: EU Hotspots and restriction of asylum seekers’ freedom of

In April, the highest Greek administrative court (Council of State) issued a much noted ruling. Tenor: the geographical restriction on the Greek islands, which is essential for implementing the hotspot concept, is illegal. The appreciation soon gave way to resignation, because only three days later the Greek Asylum Service simply reintroduced the geographical restriction. But how does this work, what binding effect does the judgment have and can the geographical restriction in general be brought into line with European and international legal requirements? Catharina Ziebritzki and Robert Nestler shed light on a central legal issue in a follow-up article for eumigrationlawblog.