Protection from Inaction
The Ministry of the Interior operates the administrative proceedings relating to the residence permit, with the aim of issuing the decision within the legal time-limit. If the time-limit has expired, without having been resolved, and the decision issued, the applicants may apply for execution of measures against inactivity1. Consequently, the application will be dealt with by a superior administrative authority – the Commission for Decision-making in Matters of Residence of Foreigners.
The Commission can take the following steps2:
- order the inactive administrative body, to take steps necessary to secure the remedy, or to issue a decision within the stipulated time-limit,
- take over the matter by passing a resolution, and issue a decision in lieu of the inactive administrative body,
- authorize another administrative body in its own administrative district by passing a resolution empowering it to continue the proceedings,
- extend appropriately the stipulated time-limit for the issuing of a decision, provided it is reasonable to assume that the administrative body will make the decision, within the extended time-limit, if such a process is more advantageous for the participants; it is necessary to have regard to the time-limits stipulated by Administrative Procedure Code3.
The application must specify clearly, what they are requesting. They must indicate in which way the superior administrative authority should decide and which specific steps (if any) should be taken. The superior administrative body is consequently bound by the content of the application and makes decision on the subject-matter of the proceedings, i.e. on the applicants´ request. However, this does not exclude measures against inaction other than those suggested by the applicants, as the authority has the automatic power to decide the request of the applicants.
1 § 80(3) of the Admnistrative Procedure Code.