What is non-refoulement and who does it apply to?

• Pages: 2-2

2

What is non-refoulement

and who does it apply to?

Non-refoulement refers to the obligation of Member

States to refrain from expelling or returning

any individual in any manner to the frontiers of

territories or to any place where they may face

persecution, the death penalty, torture or other

inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment,

even if they are in an irregular migratory situation. In

the asylum context, the principle of non-refoulement

entails a requirement to grant individuals seeking

international protection access to the territor y and

to fair and ecient asylum procedures to determine if

the person shall be granted international protection

or not.

The prohibition of refoulement is applicable to any

form of forcible removal, including depor tation,

expulsion, extradition, informal transfer or

‘renditions’, and non-admission at the border. This

includes also indirect refoulement, which is the

return of a person to a third country where the

risk of refoulement exists. No asylum seeker should

be returned to a third country for determination of

the claim without sucient guarantees, in each

individual case. These guarantees include that the

person will be readmitted to that country, will enjoy

eective protection against refoulement, will have

the possibility to seek and enjoy asylum and will be

treated in accordance with accepted international

standards.

See Section “‘Key role of f‌irst-contact ocials”

of the Practical Guide.

2