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The Refworld legal collection has been designed primarily as a tool for disseminating and promoting (international) law relating to refugees, asylum seekers, stateless persons and other persons of concern to UNHCR.

UNHCR staff, refugee lawyers, all those involved with refugee-status determination within Governments, and others concerned with the rights of refugees and asylum seekers, can find a wealth of relevant documents in the collection. Included in the collection is a unique jurisprudence collection, covering more than 40 national jurisdictions, and a vast amount of international judgments and decisions from the United Nations, the European Court of Human Rights and other international and regional courts. A comprehensive collection of international instruments relating to refugees and human rights, with the most recent lists of States Parties to key conventions, is also available. The legislation collection, contains national and international legislation relevant in assessing asylum claims and is the largest collection of its kind. Finally, Refworld contains many special agreements, such as memoranda of understanding, host-country agreements and voluntary repatriation agreements.

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EMAP (Gang violence – Convention Reason) El Salvador CG v. Secretary of State for the Home Department [2022] UKUT 00335 (IAC)

The main determination in this case is whether harm amounts to persecution for one of the five reasons set out in the Refugee Convention. The Court considered country background of El-Salvador to assess and determine if the appellant has a well-founded fear/risk of persecution for reasons relating to membership of a particular social group and different political opinion.

15 December 2022 | Judicial Body: United Kingdom: Upper Tribunal (Immigration and Asylum Chamber) | Document type: Case Law | Legal Instrument: 1951 Refugee Convention | Topic(s): Acts of persecution - Asylum-seekers - EU Qualification Directive - Gang related violence | Countries: El Salvador - United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland

M.K. and Others v. France (Applications no. 34349/18, 34638/18, and 35047/18)

Holding: France’s failure to enforce orders by the urgent-applications judge of the Administrative Court for the provision of emergency accommodation to a number of homeless and particularly vulnerable asylum-seekers was in violation of Article 6 § 1 ECtHR.

8 December 2022 | Judicial Body: Council of Europe: European Court of Human Rights | Document type: Case Law | Topic(s): Reception | Countries: France

Legal considerations on the roles and responsibilities of States in relation to rescue at sea, non-refoulement, and access to asylum

1 December 2022 | Publisher: UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) | Document type: Policy/Position Papers

UNHCR Observations on the proposed amendments to the "Law on citizenship of the Republic of Belarus" 1 September 2002 No. 136-З

December 2022 | Publisher: UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) | Document type: Comments on National Legislation

UNHCR Observations on the Proposal for amendments to the Norwegian Immigration Act (Deportation of refugees due to imposed punishment)

28 November 2022 | Publisher: UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) | Document type: Comments on National Legislation

Switzerland: Judgement F-2739/2022 of 24 November 2022

This case concerned the strict application of a waiting period for family reunification in Switzerland, aligning its case law with M.A. v Denmark (ECtHR).

24 November 2022 | Judicial Body: Switzerland: Tribunal administratif fédéral | Document type: Case Law | Topic(s): Family reunification | Countries: Switzerland

X v. Staatssecretaris van Justitie en Veiligheid Case C‑69/21

The Court adopted the view that a return decision or removal order does not infringe the right to respect for the private life of a third-country national concerned on the sole ground that, if he or she were returned to the receiving country, that national would be exposed to the risk that his or her state of health deteriorates, where such a risk does not reach the severity threshold required under Article 4 of the Charter. Nonetheless, the Court ruled that the national's state of health and the care received must be considered by the competent national authority, along with other relevant factors (such as social ties, dependency, and health fragility), when determining whether the national's right to respect for private life precludes removal.

22 November 2022 | Judicial Body: European Union: Court of Justice of the European Union | Document type: Case Law | Legal Instrument: 2008 Returns Directive (EU) | Topic(s): Border controls - Freedom from torture, inhuman and degrading treatment - Non-refoulement - Right to health | Countries: Netherlands - Russian Federation

UNHCR Observations on the bill of law amending the Act on Foreigners, no. 80/2016 (International Protection)

22 November 2022 | Publisher: UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) | Document type: Comments on National Legislation

B.T.M. v. Suisse

The Swiss authorities' decision to return a Zimbabwean national to his country of origin violated Article 3 of the Convention against Torture. The right to an effective remedy contained in Article 3 requires an opportunity for an effective, independent and impartial review of the decision to expel or return when there is a plausible allegation that issues under Article 3 arise.

11 November 2022 | Judicial Body: UN Committee Against Torture (CAT) | Document type: Case Law | Topic(s): Convention against Torture (CAT) - Non-refoulement | Countries: Switzerland

Opinion by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees for the Inquiry by the National Human Rights Commission of Korea on the Proposals for the Equality Act

November 2022 | Publisher: UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) | Document type: Comments on National Legislation

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