Reception can be understood as a structured and continuous process. Reception accompanies the applicant from the moment they make an application until the person is allowed to remain on the territory as an applicant. It can be divided into 3 phases: arrival, stay and end of reception, with each of the phases being connected to specific legal obligations.

• Arrival in reception marks the moment when applicants become entitled to reception conditions, as set out in RCD (2024). This phase is characterised by the start of both procedural and reception processes. The primary procedural and reception formalities are carried out soon upon arrival. This includes the medical screening (pursuant to article 15 RCD (2024), registration, assessment of special reception needs, age assessment (where requested), followed by allocation and transfer to an accommodation (if applicable).
  Information provision plays a central role at this stage, ensuring that applicants are promptly informed of their rights and obligations, house rules, available services as well as the procedures they are expected to follow and consequences of not complying with their obligations. 
• Stay in reception phase is the core period during which reception conditions are provided in a more stable and continuous manner. Reception conditions must be tailored to the individual needs of applicants, with particular attention to applicants with special reception needs. 
  This phase places greater emphasis on daily life, including healthcare, measures supporting well-being, autonomy and resilience, access to education for children, as well as language learning, civic education, vocational training and access to the labour market after the prescribed period (if applicable).
• End of reception corresponds to the cessation of reception conditions and is directly linked to the outcome of the asylum procedure. For applicants granted international protection, it involves the transition from reception to integration, under national law and in accordance with the Qualification Regulation. For those receiving a final negative decision, it entails a transition to return-related procedures. For some applicants it is related to the possibility of withdrawing the application and opting for voluntary return. For others it may involve a decision to be transferred to the responsible Member State under the responsibility determination procedure.

In practice, there is not always a clear delimitation in practice between these three phases, as reception is conceived as a continuous process. Applicants may move between different procedural situations (e.g. asylum border procedure, regular asylum procedure, responsibility determination procedure, relocation) and these three phases do not reflect the full diversity of the reception systems across the Member States. 

Nevertheless, the RCD (2024) emphasises that certain obligations are not phase-specific but apply throughout the entire reception period. This includes the provision of timely, accessible and comprehensible information, the ongoing identification and assessment of special reception needs, access to legal assistance and counselling where required, with reception conditions being adapted to applicants’ evolving needs.