Organisation:  Safe Passage International (SPI) in collaboration with Cyprus Refugee Council (CyRC)

• Salary: € 29.529 annually (12 months)

• Contract: Full time, Self-employment contract

• Location: Nicosia Cyprus (CyRC office)

• Daily Line Manager: CyRC

• Position supervised by Safe Passage International in Greece (signatory party)

• Contracting party: SPI (the option of a contractual agreement with CRC could be also discussed with the selected candidate)

Cyprus Refugee Council and Safe Passage International (SPI) Greece are jointly recruiting a a Legal consultant / Lawyer to support and to enable continuing and sustainable growth in our ground-breaking work to ensure that safe, legal routes to sanctuary exist for all people seeking asylum.

More particularly, the work of the lawyer in Cyprus shall focus on cases of refugees and persons in need of protection on the move to be reunited with family members in Europe, (or to bring family members to Cyprus).

The legal consultant will undertake predominantly Dublin III family reunification cases from Cyprus to other EU states. However, the role will also support persons in Cyprus that trying to reach their families in the UK under any existing legal framework after Brexit.  

Whenever possible, the consultant shall be working, with the support of both organizations, in exploring new or alternatives legal procedures and schemes for family reunification.

This is a dynamic and multi-dimensional role liaising with state and non-state actors in Cyprus and within Europe to provide specialized advice and support for family reunification cases of unaccompanied and separated children and vulnerable asylum seekers in Cyprus. The role will also aim to support and improve the effective operation of procedures within Cyprus and the proper implementation of existing legal provisions, enabling safe transfers from Cyprus.

We are looking for professional and personal skills, as detailed in the Person Specification. Experience in a similar role would be welcomed, preferably in Cyprus.

The position will be working within the legal team of the Cyprus Refugees Council and under the daily management of the Head of the CyRC legal team. SPI will provide supervision and support on family reunification procedures, cross border collaboration aiming at the effective outcome of supported cases, capacity building and legal advocacy activities based on the work of the legal consultant.

The role shall respect the code of conduct and values of both organisations that are well aligned as well as their safeguarding procedures.

We value equity and diversity in our organisation and are striving to build a workforce reflective of the communities we work with. We encourage applications from people of all ethnicities, working ages, genders, sex, sexual orientations, faiths (or none), marital statuses (or none) and pregnancy status. People with refugee or asylum-seeking backgrounds are experts by experience and are particularly encouraged to apply.

As a refugee charity, we offer a guaranteed interview for people with direct lived experience of seeking asylum who meet most of the essential criteria outlined in the Person Specification. If you have first-hand experience of applying for asylum in any country, please let us know in your application. We respect that people’s identities are not defined by their past experiences and do not expect candidates to describe their lived experience during the interview process unless they wish to.

If you are excited by this role and working at Safe Passage International but do not have all the experience you think is needed, we would encourage you to apply anyway and reach out for an informal chat beforehand to discuss why you would like to apply for the role and what skills or experiences you think are relevant.

For an informal discussion about the role, please email Sandy Protogerou for SPI at  sandy@safepassage.org.uk  or Corina Drousiotou for CyRC at corina@cyrefugeecouncil.org

How do I apply?

Please read the full Job Description & Person Specification document below.

Please apply by sending your CV and a cover letter that addresses each point of the Skills and Abilities section of the Person Specification to recruitment@safepassage.org.uk. Please also tell us why you would enjoy this role.

Closing date: Tuesday 20th May 2025 at 11.59 pm