1.2.1 International law

The key instruments in matters of international protection are the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees (1951) and its Protocol (1967). The Convention was adopted on 28 July 1951, in the aftermath of World War II, and entered into force on 22 April 1954. As of February 2021, 146 States are party to the Convention, including all EU member States. The 1967 Protocol removed geographical restrictions and time limits of the Convention. The 1951 Convention, also known as the Geneva Convention of 1951, provides a definition of refugee, and contains the rights of refugees, their obligations towards host countries, as well as the obligations of States.
According to Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, a refugee is a person who “owing to well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country or who, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his former habitual residence as a result of such events, is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to return to it”. The Convention (article 33§1) also enshrines a key principle of asylum law: the principle of non-refoulement, which determines the prohibition of expulsion or return of a refugee “to the frontiers of territories where his life or freedom would be threatened on account of his race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion.” The “principle of non-refoulement” is also a core principle of international human rights law, contained, for example, in the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (1984). Although the 1951 Convention and its Protocol are the key legal and global instruments dealing with refugees, there are also important regional instruments on international protection. In addition, States are also bound by international human rights instruments, which apply to refugees and asylum seekers within their jurisdiction.

Online Resources

- OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa
This website contains the text of the OAU Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa.
- Cartagena Declaration on Refugees
This website contains the text of the OAS Cartagena Declaration on Refugees.
- UNHCR, Handbook on Procedures and Criteria for Determining Refugee Status and Guidelines on International Protection Under the 1951 Convention and the 1967 Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees
This Handbook is intended to guide government officials, judges, practitioners, as well as UNHCR staff in applying the refugee definition.
- UNHCR and the Inter-Parliamentary Union, A guide to international refugee protection and building state asylum systems
This UNHCR and the Inter-Parliamentary Union Handbook aims to inform parliamentarians about the founding principles and obligations of international refugee law, and to mobilize their support for establishing and maintaining fair and effective national asylum systems.
- UNHCR, Advisory Opinion on the Extraterritorial Application of Non-Refoulement Obligations under the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol
In this advisory opinion, UNHCR addresses the question of the extraterritorial application of the principle of non-refoulement under the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol.