41
corruption within the Interior Ministry and the surrounding “leech” industries such as
lawyers and notaries made the prospect of spontaneous legalization for the estimated
500,000 remaining undocumented migrants in Greece38 unattractive due to the potential
loss of income from bribes39 (see Kathimerini 2006). In terms of external help from the
EU, Vassili explained that even Europe-level directives designed to aid undocumented
long-term residents to become legal were being hampered by Greece40 which had
introduced roadblocks in terms of extraordinary application fees and other inhibiting
requirements to restrict access to long-term status. For example, the state requires
applicants to provide a photocopy of a valid passport, residence permit, income tax return
for two years indicating a minimum income, a document from the tax office indicating
that the applicant does not owe taxes, proof of medical insurance, a certified copy of a
rental agreement, applicants must successfully complete 100 hours of Greek language
and 25 hours of history and culture classes, pay 900 euros, and provide three passport
photos (Tzilivakis 2006a). While these requirements may be appropriate for some
applicants, they make application for the huge number of undocumented migrants living
in the country nearly impossible. In later interviews with Greece's Deputy Ombudsman,
Andreas Takis, I was told that even short term residence permits are difficult to obtain
38 This was Vassili’s estimate. Based on my fieldwork and on interviews I conducted with various NGOs, I
would put the number of undocumented migrants around Greece in the thousands, perhaps as many as four
or five thousand if not more.
39 This is obviously a very controversial subject, and it is possible that my contact was exaggerating the
situation to seem more interesting and knowledgeable.
40 This situation reaches beyond residency status. In April 2008, the UNHCR accused Greece of
mishandling asylum applications of refugees. Of 25,113 applicants in 2007 only 8 people were granted
refugee status with 138 more on appeal. The Hellenic Police Head of Asylum, Nikolas Stavrakakis, argued
that complications regarding the determination of the intent of applicants plus administrative backlog are
responsible for this situation. The UNHCR accuses the country of being behind on its EU commitments
and of violating human rights (BBC 2008; see also, UNHCR 2002; 2008). Greece is happier to keep
asylum seekers in limbo for over four years in some cases than to meet its commitments.