Facts
The appellant [A.] claims to be from Mali. He was taken into deportation detention on 19 September 2019 and transferred to enforcement detention on 14 January 2020. The enforcement detention was repeatedly extended, most recently until 14 August 2020. [A.] applied to the FSCA to be released from detention, as neither voluntary departure nor deportation to Mali were possible in the foreseeable future due to the travel restrictions in the context of combating the COVID-19 pandemic.Considerations
The FSCA upheld the appeal. It stated that in cases where the departure of a foreign national in enforcement detention is not (only) impossible due to his or her own conduct, but due to an objective technical obstacle whose duration is not foreseeable, the principle of proportionality is violated. Since no flights to Mali are taking place due to the COVID-19 pandemic and there are entry and exit restrictions, the appellant cannot voluntarily return to his home country nor can he be deported there. In this case, a two-stage review of the detention, first examining the cooperation of the person concerned and then the technical possibility of departure, cannot be carried out.
The FSCA further stated that at…