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Refugee status

SpainHumanitarian protection

Explore the five recorded questions, answers and sources for this pathway.

Official link

What exactly is this: asylum, temporary protection, humanitarian admission, resettlement or another protection mechanism?

Refugee status is recognised through the right of asylum (article 13.4 of the Spanish Constitution) under Regulation (EU) 2024/1347 and the 1951 Geneva Convention with its 1967 Protocol, with Law 12/2009 applying where compatible. The protection consists of non-refoulement and non-expulsion (article 21 of the Regulation) and the rights and obligations of refugee status under the Regulation, compatible Spanish law and ratified conventions.

See recorded sources
  • https://proteccion-asilo.interior.gob.es/es/proteccion-internacional/pema/que-es-la-proteccion-internacional/
    El derecho de asilo, reconocido en el artículo 13.4 de la Constitución Española, es la protección dispensada a los nacionales no comunitarios o a los apátridas a quienes se reconozca la condición de refugiado en los términos establecidos en el Reglamento (UE) 2024/1347 del Parlamento Europeo y del Consejo, de 14 de mayo de 2024, y en la Convención sobre el Estatuto de los Refugiados, hecha en Ginebra el 28 de julio de 1951, complementada por el Protocolo sobre el Estatuto de los Refugiados, hecho en Nueva York el 31 de enero de 1967. La Ley 12/2009, de 30 de octubre, reguladora del Derecho de Asilo y la Protección Subsidiaria, resulta asimismo de aplicación en lo que sea compatible con lo dispuesto en el citado Reglamento.
  • https://proteccion-asilo.interior.gob.es/es/proteccion-internacional/pema/que-es-la-proteccion-internacional/
    La protección concedida con el derecho de asilo y la protección subsidiaria consiste en la no devolución ni expulsión de las personas a quienes se les haya reconocido (artículo 21 del Reglamento (UE) 2024/1347), así como en el conjunto de derechos y obligaciones asociados al estatuto de refugiado o a la protección subsidiaria contemplados en dicho Reglamento, en la normativa española que sea compatible con él y en los Convenios internacionales ratificados por España.

Which population, circumstances or geographic group does the mechanism cover?

Any person who, owing to a well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, membership of a particular social group, gender or sexual orientation, is outside their country of nationality and cannot or will not avail themselves of its protection, or a stateless person in the same situation regarding their former habitual residence, unless an exclusion or withdrawal ground of articles 12 and 14.2 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1347 applies. Persecution must be sufficiently serious by nature or repetition, or an accumulation of measures with similar effect.

See recorded sources

Where can protection be requested, and is this a direct application, border/in-country request, referral or other process?

A person must express in person the wish for international protection to a competent authority: designated National Police stations, border-control security forces, designated public reception centres (for people already housed there), foreigners' detention centres (CIE) and prisons (for people held there). Those who arrive and cannot enter apply at the border post; those already in Spain use the channels listed for each province and request an appointment via the National Police link. The request is then registered by the National Police and formally lodged ("formalización") with a personal interview, as a direct in-person application under Regulation (EU) 2024/1348 for applications lodged from 12 June; applications lodged before 12 June follow Law 12/2009.

See recorded sources

What happens after the request: registration, family handling, major support and rights where officially stated?

If Spain is responsible, the claim goes through an admissibility procedure (decided within two months of formalisation, extendable by two) and/or a merits examination to decide whether refugee status or subsidiary protection is granted: an accelerated procedure in listed cases (decision within three months) or the ordinary examination (within six months, extendable by six; deferral possible up to 21 months if the country of origin is in an uncertain but temporary situation). The applicant may be called to a new interview. Initial reception of applicants is managed by the NGOs ACCEM, CEAR (Comisión Española de Ayuda al Refugiado) and Spanish Red Cross (Cruz Roja Española). The official source does not state family handling.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • Family extension/reunification and reception support were not captured for this route.

Which competent authority, UN body or official assistance channel should the person use?

The official asylum portal is run by the Dirección General de Protección Internacional. Initial reception of applicants is managed by the NGOs ACCEM, CEAR (Comisión Española de Ayuda al Refugiado) and Spanish Red Cross (Cruz Roja Española); other listed NGOs offer assistance and guidance. UNHCR (ACNUR) and the Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration are listed as other bodies.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • No official fraud or scam warning was found on the captured pages.

These are the answers currently recorded in the catalogue. A missing or partial answer is not an eligibility decision.

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