When Asylum is the Only Way Out: Macedonia’s Asylum Legislation Before and After the Refugee Crisis

Abstract

Starting the refugee crisis and the influx of different categories of people moving to and through the territory of the Republic of Macedonia has shown how legal and practical weaknesses Macedonia and the other countries of the region have. Although, most of the migrants and refugees passing through the Macedonian territory, did not seek asylum here, but in the EU member countries, a necessity for changes in the provisions of the Asylum Law emerged. In the light of the above, using the normative and comparative method, the paper analyses the 2015/2016 refugees and migrant crisis situation in the Republic of Macedonia, the legal challenges, mostly the Asylum Law amendments and their compatibility with the EU's Common European Asylum System.