country of origin.447 At this time, applicants may apply to the legal aid bureau for a lawyer free of charge or engage a lawyer at their own expense. However, during the interview with the Immigration Department, lawyers may not be present. In practice, the legal assistance available is often deficient due to asylum seekers being referred to inexperienced lawyers and due to structural flaws in the legal aid system.448 If the asylum seeker files an application at the border without the necessary documents to enter Belgium, he or she will be held at the border while awaiting the processing of the application.449 Asylum seekers who have filed an application inside Belgian territory with the Immigration Department will be assigned to a reception center by Fedasil (Federal Agency for the Reception of Asylum seekers). The asylum seeker will be provided with material assistance in accordance with the Reception Law of 2007, including food, accommodation, clothing, medical/ psychological care, legal assistance, language assistance, and a daily allowance.450 After 4 months in a reception center, asylum seekers can request to move to individual housing provided by social services or an NGO, and they can continue to receive other benefits.451 Since January 2010, asylum seekers are allowed to work if they have not received an initial or “first instance” decision within six months. These six months do not include the time for pursuing an appeal.452 Additionally, asylum seekers in reception centers are allowed to take classes and can earn a small income from jobs within the center.453 After the Immigration Department has registered an application and completed the preliminary examination, the case will be transferred to the Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons (Commissariat général aux réfugiés et aux apatrides “CGRA”), which will examine the merits of the case. At least one interview will be scheduled by the CGRA as part of the refugee status determination. The interview will focus on the reasons for leaving the country of origin. The lawyer is allowed to be present during the CGRA interview, and at the end of the interview, the lawyer is given the opportunity to make comments.454 At Ibid. Ruben Wissing, National Country Report: Belgium (ECRE/AIDA, June 2014), 76, http://www. asylumineurope.org/sites/default/files/report-download/aida_-_belgium_second_update_ uploaded.pdf. 449 Ibid., 34. 450 Ibid., 54; see also State of Belgium, “Loi Du 12 Janvier 2007 Sur L’accueil Des Demandeurs D’asile et de Certaines Autres Catégories D’étrangers [French],” January 12, 2007, http://fedasil.be/sites/5042. fedimbo.belgium.be/files/01_loi_du_12_janvier_2007_sur_laccueil_des_demandeurs_dasile_et_ dautres_categories_detrangers_0.pdf, Articles 3 and 18. 451 Ruben Wissing, National Country Report: Belgium, 57; State of Belgium, “Loi Du 12 Janvier 2007 Sur L’accueil Des Demandeurs D’asile et de Certaines Autres Catégories D’étrangers [French],” Article 12(1). 452 Information provided by Femke Vogelaar. 453 Fedasil, “About the Reception Centres,” accessed November 17, 2014, http://fedasil.be/en/ content/about-reception-centres-0. 454 Information provided by Femke Vogelaar. 447 448 92 Handbook on Protection of Palestinian Refugees