In some regions, alternatives to state-led initiatives are in place. For example, in the EU, experts in asylum and rehabilitation of torture victims have developed a mechanism to identify VoTs because the EU law provisions have not been properly transposed in most Member States, and therefore it has become increasingly necessary to address the gaps in the protection afforded to VoTs. The PROTECT project is an example of an initiative started by experts providing rehabilitation services to VoTs to develop a basic screening tool to overcome the problems currently faced in many countries where medical screening of asylum applicants is not common practice. There has been growing interest shown by EU institutions, and by the EU Member States, to apply the PROTECT screening tool. For example, in Bulgaria, the State Agency for Refugees (SAR) adopted the PROTECT questionnaire as an official tool in October 2012. The adoption of the tool has seen some improvement in the early identification of VoTs in Bulgaria, but it should be noted that it needs to be fully implemented as part of the national asylum legislation to avoid the risk that the state authorities may stop using it at any time. However, as is seen by the increased use of the PROTECT tool, it is proven to be both beneficial and cost-efficient for national governments, as well as the rehabilitation centres. A further expansion of the PROTECT project is expected, as well as the possible inclusion of the tool in the European Asylum Curriculum, the training component of the European Asylum Support Office (EASO). Addressing gaps in the early identification of VoTs in the EU: The PROTECT tool104 PROTECT was started by the IRCT member centre Parcours d’exil, in France, along with five other EU-based NGOs providing asylum and rehabilitation services. Key objectives were to increase, by proposing practical tools, the number of VoTs identified early in the asylum process and to raise awareness of the need for processes to be put in place for the recognition of torture victims in order to facilitate their access to immediate health care and treatment. The initiative recognised the need to harmonise assessment across EU Member States and to ensure compliance with the Reception Conditions Directive (RCD) and the Asylum Procedures Directive (APD), recognising that at present the procedures vary widely between Member States. The tool promotes an easy process to be adapted by governments for use before or during the interview phase of the asylum procedure. A screening checklist has been devised that immigration authorities, civil servants, border guards or other stakeholders accessing asylum-seekers can use in the early stages. The checklist assists the identification of vulnerable persons who have suffered severe traumatic experiences or who are suffering from other severe psychological distress in order to provide them with: (i) adapted material reception conditions, (ii) appropriate physical and mental health care, and (iii) adequate support through their asylum application. The questions are designed to check for the signs and symptoms of the most common health problems, such as PTSD and depression, in order to identify psychologically vulnerable asylum-seekers who may have suffered traumatic experiences. The questionnaire, designed to be used by nonmedical personnel, is a tool for identifying vulnerable asylum-seekers quickly and in a cost-effective way. As a second step of early identification, that person should have access to a full psychiatric or psychological diagnosis, according to the Istanbul Protocol standards. The second phase of the project (PROTECT-ABLE) started in September 2012. The project has been extended to 11 NGOs from nine countries.105 The partners of the project benefit from the support of experts from IRCT, the Odysseus Network and PHAROS (Netherlands). The first goal of the PROTECT-ABLE project is to train 500 persons (volunteers, social workers, etc.) in nine European countries to use the PROTECT questionnaire and screening process. The selected groups are public and/or private partners and the trainings are provided free of charge by the partners. The project will begin by screening around 2,500 asylum-seekers using the PROTECT questionnaire and hopes to reach a target of 10,000 asylum-seekers per year. Recognising victims of torture in national asylum procedures / 57