Refugee:

In order for asylum to be granted, and therefore acquire to Refugee Status an individual must meet the following definition:

“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 (…)”. Article 1(2) of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugee.

When you are thinking about applying for asylum in a foreign country you must consider whether you fall into the definition of a refugee.

Ask yourself:

Persecution: am I fleeing because I am afraid of being persecuted? Did I suffer persecution in the past? Am I afraid for my life in my own country? Is someone persecuting me? Can my government protect me? Is the government persecuting me?

Reasons: what is the reason of the persecution towards me? Is it included in the definition mentioned above (race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, political opinion)?

Membership of a particular social group: individuals identifying as Lesbian Gay Bisexual or Transgender can apply for asylum under this category in the definition.

Asylum seeker:

An individual who is in a foreign country and seeking international protection. Not every asylum seeker will ultimately be recognized as a refugee, but every refugee is initially an asylum seeker.

Asylum process:

In order to establish whether you meet the definition of refugee and can be granted asylum, you will have to present your case to asylum authorities. This will be done through an interview in the country where you are asking for protection. During the interview the asylum official will ask you a lot of personal questions to help them prove that what you are telling them is true. They will ask you to remember many things, possibly painful, that you were trying to forget. We suggest you to take all the time they give you to prepare by writing down your story and try to remember as many details as you can (names, dates, places). After 6 months (or longer) you will receive a written notification about your case: it can be accepted or rejected. In case of rejection you will be given the possibility to appeal the negative decision. Please keep in mind that this process may vary from country to country in some details.

Resettlement:

Resettlement is the transfer of refugees from a first country of asylum to another state that has agreed to admit them and ultimately grant them permanent settlement. The refugee status is a prerequisite to resettlement. Please note that today, resettlement places are extremely limited, and available for only about one in ten persons in need of resettlement. Less than 0.6 % of refugees in the world are resettled to a third country.

Here you can find a list of the main organizations working in the migration field:

INTERNATIONAL

UNHCR: United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees: https://easo.europa.eu/
IOM: International Organization for Migration: https://www.iom.int/
EASO: European Asylum Support Office : https://easo.europa.eu/