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1. The determining authority shall examine and take decisions on applications for international protection in accordance with the basic principles and guarantees set out in Chapter II.

2. The determining authority shall take decisions on applications for international protection after an appropriate examination as to the admissibility or merits of an application. The determining authority shall examine applications objectively, impartially and on an individual basis. For the purpose of examining an application, the determining authority shall take the following into account:

(a) the relevant statements and documentation presented by the applicant in accordance with Article 4(1) and (2) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1347;

(b) relevant, precise and up-to-date information relating to the situation prevailing in the country of origin of the applicant at the time of taking a decision on the application, including laws and regulations of the country of origin and the manner in which they are applied, obtained from relevant and available national, Union and international sources, including children’s rights organisations and, where available, the common analysis on the situation in specific countries of origin and the guidance notes referred to in Article 11 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2303;

(c) where applying the concepts of first country of asylum or safe third country, relevant, precise and up-to-date information relating to the situation prevailing in the third country being considered as a first country of asylum or a safe third country at the time of taking a decision on the application, including information and analysis on safe third countries referred to in Article 12 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2303;

(d) the individual position and personal circumstances of the applicant, including factors such as the applicant’s background, age, gender, gender identity and sexual orientation, so as to assess whether, on the basis of the applicant’s personal circumstances, the acts to which the applicant has been or could be exposed would amount to persecution or serious harm;

(e) whether the activities that the applicant was engaged in since leaving the country of origin were carried out by the applicant for the sole or main purpose of creating the necessary conditions for applying for international protection, so as to assess whether those activities would expose the applicant to persecution or serious harm, as referred to in Article 5 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1347, if returned to that country;

(f) whether the applicant could reasonably be expected to avail himself or herself of the protection of another country where he or she could assert citizenship;

(g) provided that the State or agents of the State are not the actors of persecution or serious harm, whether the internal protection alternative referred to in Article 8 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1347 applies.

3. The staff examining applications and taking decisions shall have the appropriate knowledge and shall have received training, including the relevant training under Article 8 of Regulation (EU) 2021/2303, in the relevant standards applicable in the field of asylum and refugee law. They shall have the possibility to seek advice, whenever necessary, from experts on particular issues, such as medical, cultural, religious, mental health, and child-related or gender issues. Where necessary, they may submit queries to the Asylum Agency in accordance with Article 10(2), point (b), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2303.

4. Documents assessed by the determining authority as relevant for the examination of applications shall be translated, where necessary, for such examination. The translation of those relevant documents or parts thereof may be provided by other entities and paid for from public funds in accordance with the national law of the Member State concerned. The applicant may, at his or her own cost, ensure the translation of other documents. For subsequent applications, the applicant may be made responsible for the translation of documents.

5. The determining authority may prioritise the examination of an application for international protection in particular where:

(a) it considers that the application is likely to be well-founded;

(b) the applicant has special reception needs within the meaning of Article 24 of Directive (EU) 2024/1346 or is in need of special procedural guarantees as referred to in Articles 20 to 23 of this Regulation, in particular where he or she is an unaccompanied minor;

(c) there are reasonable grounds to consider the applicant as a danger to the national security or public order of the Member State;

(d) the application is a subsequent application;

(e) the applicant has been subject to a decision in accordance with Article 23(2), point (e), of Directive (EU) 2024/1346, has been involved in causing public nuisance or has engaged in criminal behaviour.