Thanos Plevris announced a sweeping review of all asylum permits granted over recent years to thousands of migrants, aiming to determine whether the conditions for maintaining them still apply. He made the statement during a plenary session of the Hellenic Parliament.

The Minister of Migration and Asylum stressed that this initiative forms a core pillar of government policy and estimated that more than 1,000 asylum permits will be revoked by the end of the first half of 2026.

“Asylum is not a permanent status. I have instructed that all cases be re-examined,” Plevris said. “The review will not be conducted on a name-by-name basis, but according to specific criteria—such as whether the asylum holder has been arrested or involved in cases affecting public order, or whether they come from countries now considered safe. Where these conditions apply, asylum will be revoked.”

He added: “Our message is clear and unequivocal: if someone is not at risk in their country of origin, their asylum will be revoked and they will return to their country. This is our central policy.”

Plevris made these remarks while responding to a topical question by Dimitris Tzanakopoulos concerning the re-examination of the case of Javed Aslam, president of the Pakistani Community.

The minister also noted that during a recent four-party meeting in Rome, he informed his Pakistani counterpart that a significant number of asylum revocations concerning Pakistani nationals residing in Greece will take place in the near future.

Finally, Plevris recalled that in 2015 there were just 19 asylum revocations, adding that from 2021 through the end of 2025 the number rose to 595.