The EMN Asylum and Migration Glossary is an online resource of terms related to migration and asylum in Europe, which improves comparability by enabling a common understanding and use of terms and definitions relating to asylum and migration.
It draws on a variety of sources, but primarily on the legislation of the EU asylum and migration acquis, and makes terms available in the majority of EU Member States languages.
- ASYLUM: A form of protection based on the principle of non-refoulement and internationally or nationally recognised rights. It is granted to a person who is unable to apply for protection in the country in which he/she resides and/or of which he/she is a national, in particular because of fear of persecution for reasons of race or national/ethnic origin, religion, membership of a particular social group or political opinion. The right to asylum is a fundamental right and the granting of asylum is an international obligation.
- REFUGEE: A person who, because of a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership of a particular social group and/or because of war, is outside the country of which he/she is a national and is unable or unwilling to avail himself/herself of the protection of that country. Or a stateless person who is outside his/her country of habitual residence for the same reasons as those mentioned above and is unable or unwilling to return to it.
- MIGRANT: A person who is outside the territory of the country of which he/she is a national and who has resided in a foreign country for more than one year, irrespective of the reasons, voluntary or involuntary, and the means used to migrate. ECONOMIC MIGRANT: Anyone who travels to other countries or areas to improve their material and social conditions and to create new opportunities for themselves and their families.
- THE DUBLIN REGULATION: Regulation laying down the criteria and mechanisms for determining the EU Member State responsible for examining an application for international protection lodged in one of the Member States by a third-country national or a stateless person. The Dublin system operates on the assumption that, since asylum laws and procedures in the Member States are based on the same common standards, they provide asylum seekers in all Member States with a similar level of protection. In reality, asylum legislation and procedures vary considerably from one country to another, which means that asylum seekers are treated differently in different countries.
- PRINCIPLE OF NON-RETURN: A fundamental principle of international refugee and human rights law that prohibits States from deporting or forcibly returning individuals to a country where there is a real risk that they will be subjected to persecution, torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or other human rights violations, or to a country with a systemically deficient asylum system. The State should also not return persons to an otherwise “safe” country if the individual would be at risk of further return to a country that is not a safe country.
- A RETENTION PERMIT: Permission for a person (an alien) to remain in a country temporarily if his/her deportation is not possible because: his/her life or freedom would be threatened as a result; because of a medical condition; for educational purposes; if the country to which the person is being returned is not prepared to accept him/her; if he/she does not have a valid travel document; because of natural disasters; if it is not possible to organise transport.
- INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION: Measures taken by the international community on the basis of international law to protect the fundamental rights of a special category of persons outside their countries of origin who do not have the protection of their own countries. In the EU context, protection including refugee status and subsidiary protection status.
- ILLEGAL MIGRANT: Illegal migrant is not a legally defined term, but is often used to refer to people who have entered a country without the necessary documents. Illegal entry is usually punished as an administrative offence. However, persons seeking international protection often have no choice but to cross borders illegally. Under the Geneva Conventions, they cannot be detained or fined for such behavior.
- PERSON WITH A MIGRANT BACKGROUND: A person who: (a) has migrated to his/her current country of residence and/or (b) previously held another nationality and/or (c) at least one parent has entered his/her current country of residence as a migrant.
- APPLICANT FOR ASYLUM/INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION: A person seeking international protection on the grounds of persecution or war in his/her country of origin and awaiting a decision on his/her application for refugee status in accordance with international and national law. While waiting, he/she must not be forced to return to his/her country. Every refugee is initially an asylum seeker, but not every asylum seeker is automatically granted refugee status. Persons who are found not to be refugees and not in need of international protection during the procedure are returned to their country of origin by the competent authorities.
- TEMPORARY PROTECTION: An exceptional procedure in the event of a mass influx of displaced persons who are unable to return to their country of origin. In this case, it may not be feasible to determine eligibility for protection on a person-by-person basis, and it may be necessary to provide general protection to all members of a particular large group. The existence of a mass influx must be established by a decision of the Council of the EU.
- TRAFFICKING IN HUMANS: The recruitment, transportation, hiding, receipt or accommodation of, and sale of persons for the purpose of exploitation. Forms of exploitation may include: informal economy labour, slavery, servitude, prostitution or other forms of sexual abuse, trafficking in organs or induction into criminal activity.
