The change of government in Damascus has prompted a number of European nations to suspend asylum applications for Syrians.
More than 14 million people in Syria have been forced to flee their homes since the civil war began in 2011. There are an estimated seven million internally displaced and a similar number of refugees, mostly located in neighboring nations including Lebanon, Türkiye and Jordan.
Tens of thousands of Syrians have also sought asylum in Europe, many arriving between 2015 and 2016. More than a million people of Syrian descent live in Germany but the country has moved to freeze asylum applications.
Officials say the political landscape in Syria puts asylum decisions "on shaky ground." It's a move that could impact over 47,000 people and Germany is just one of more than half a dozen European nations to take similar action.
Many nations say the decision to temporarily halt asylum applications is to help better assess the security situation, but Austria has gone even further. Not only has it stopped processing asylum applications but it's preparing a plan to repatriate and deport Syrian migrants.
Syrian migrants wait at the Cilvegozu border gate to cross into Syria from Turkiye. /Dilara Senkaya/Reuters
The UN has called for countries to continue processing asylum requests.
"Any Syrian or anyone seeking international protection must be able to access asylum procedures and have their application examined fully and individually on its merits," said Shabia Mantoo, spokesperson for the UN Refugee Agency.
The European Commission says the situation in Syria remains fluid and it is adhering to UN guidelines.
"For the time being we maintain in line with the UNHCR, that the conditions are not met for the safe, voluntary, dignified returns to Syria," said Anouar El Anouni, Spokesperson at the European Commission.
Roughly 90 percent of Syria's population lives in poverty. With much still unknown about the rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and the outlook for the country, aid groups say refugees must be protected.
Matthew Hemsley, EU Senior Advocacy Advisor at the Norwegian Refugee Council told CGTN: "Now Assad has gone does not mean that Syria is safe for them all to come back.
"We need to see a real thought-through process and people still offered that protection and support they need, whether they're in Syria, whether they're in, for example, in Lebanon or in a European country."
EU officials say there are promising signs for Syria but it's too early to issue a verdict. Humanitarian groups hope Syrian asylum seekers are afforded the same ability to wait and see.