Constitutional Court extends asylum appeal deadline

The Czech Republic’s Constitutional Court on Thursday abolished parts of the Czech immigration act, extending the time limit for appeals by unsuccessful asylum seekers from seven to fifteen days. The Constitutional Court upheld a prior ruling by the country’s Supreme Administrative Court. The court dealt with the case of a Ukrainian citizen who claimed he was unable to appeal against the Interior Ministry’s decision not to grant him international protection.

More than 1600 foreigners asked for asylum in the Czech Republic in 2008, most frequently coming from Ukraine; Czech authorities granted 157 asylums last year.