Entry ban to Hungary – is there a way back?

A third-country foreign citizen who is subject to an entry ban may no longer enter or stay in the territory of Hungary and the European Union and, in principle, may no longer obtain a visa for the EU for the duration of the entry ban. He will be refused entry at the border and normally forcibly removed if found on the territory of an EU member state. The question is, if someone does not want to wait out the entire duration of the entry ban, is it possible to request its withdrawal?

Our law firm has represented clients in many similar cases against the Hungarian authorities, so we have considerable experience in how to legally convince the Hungarian immigration authorities to withdraw an entry ban previously ordered against a foreign citizen.

The immigration authority may order an entry ban against a foreign citizen taking into account the nature and severity of the infringement, the personal circumstances of the third-country national concerned, and whether his/her continued residence represents a serious threat to public security, public policy, or national security of Hungary. As a main rule, the duration of an entry ban may not exceed five years, except, if the third-country citizen’s residence in the territory of Hungary represents a serious threat to public security, public policy, or national security. In this latter case, the duration of the entry ban can last up to 10 years.

During the duration of the entry ban, one can apply for two types of relief from the ban: occasional, i.e. one-time lifting of the ban, or complete withdrawal of the entry ban.

According to the applicable Hungarian legislation, it is possible for a third-country citizen under an entry ban to apply for one-time permission from the Hungarian authorities to enter the territory of Hungary.

Also, in some special cases, the immigration authority may withdraw – upon request or on its own motion – the entry ban if the foreign citizen can demonstrate that he or she has left the territory of the European Union in full compliance with the decision of expulsion, or to uphold the entry ban is no longer justified due to major changes in the underlying circumstances. Also, the immigration police are entitled to withdraw the expulsion order and entry ban if the expulsion is not carried out – for reasons beyond the foreigner’s control – within twelve months following the date when the expulsion order became final and enforceable.

Good to know: if the entry ban is ordered by the immigration police on the recommendation of the Hungarian National Police, the Anti-Terrorism Center (TEK), or the Office for the Protection of the Constitution (our internal security agency like the FBI, MI5, FSB), then in case of the foreigner requests the lifting of the entry ban, the immigration police will first contact the state police or security agency that made the original proposal for the ban, and the immigration police lifts the ban only if the said agency also gives its consent to it. We add that the entry ban is usually withdrawn for humanitarian, family, or study reasons.

The procedure for revoking the entry ban always requires thorough legal preparation and the collection of a lot of documents, so in our opinion, the applicant is in a much more difficult situation without legal representation than with an expert immigration attorney.