The aim of the Information Centre of the Asylum Division of the Migration Department under the Ministry of Internal Affairs is to provide information to the employees that examine asylum cases on asylum applicants’ countries of origin or third countries, through which they arrive in Lithuania.
The information on situation in asylum applicants’ countries of origin or third countries is researched in accordance with the Common EU Guidelines for processing Country of Origin Information (2008), which require that information is selected and validated according to these quality standards: Neutrality, balance, reliability, currency, objectivity, accuracy, transparency and traceability, usability. When conducting COI research, it is essential that this is done in an objective manner and that the researcher remains neutral regarding the determination of the individual asylum claim.
While replying to information queries on political, security and human rights situation in countries of origin or describing situation in the third countries, specialists of the Information centre produce reports.The users of the Migration Department COI products are first of all Asylum Division as well as other Divisions involved in conducting returns to countries of origin, courts, lawyers, the State Security Department and NGO’s.