The 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees is an international treaty. It can be read alongside the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (known as the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees). The Refugee Convention was drafted after the Second World War, during which several million people were displaced throughout Europe. It applied only to persons who had been expelled as a result of events prior to 1 January 1951. Upon ratification (accession) of the Convention, countries could decide to further restrict its application so that it applies only to refugees displaced by events in Europe before 1 January 1951. UNHCR is the “guardian” of the 1951 Convention and its 1967 Protocol. According to the legislation, states are supposed to work with us to ensure that the rights of refugees are respected and protected. The 1967 Protocol lifted the temporal and geographical limitations of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, making the Convention universally applicable. Article 1 of the Protocol stipulates that countries that ratify it agree to abide by the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees – even if they are not parties to it. For example, the United States has not ratified the Refugee Convention, but it has ratified the 1967 Protocol. This means that it is obliged to apply the provisions of the Convention which oblige it to treat refugees in accordance with internationally recognized legal and humanitarian standards. This includes respect for the principle of non-refoulement – i.e.

not sending refugees to a place where they are threatened with persecution or to a country that could send them to such a place; provide refugees with legal status, including rights such as access to employment, education and social security; and not to punish refugees who enter “illegally”, i.e. without a passport or visa. After 1951, new refugee situations arose, and these new refugees did not fall within the scope of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. This vulnerability led governments to create the 1967 Protocol because they considered it “desirable that all refugees covered by the Convention Definition be treated equally, regardless of the deadline of 1 January 1951” (preamble to the Protocol). The fundamental principle is non-refoulement, which stipulates that a refugee must not be returned to a country where he or she is seriously threatened with his or her life or freedom. This is now considered the rule of customary international law. The 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol are the most important legal documents that form the basis of our work. Together with 149 States parties from one or both States, they define the term “refugee” and describe the rights of refugees and the legal obligations of States to protect them. The most frequently asked questions about the Treaty and its Protocol. . A brochure on the benefits for governments of acceding to the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees. Minutes of the 1951 Plenipotentiary Conference on the Status of Refugees and Stateless Persons.

The effect of the Protocol means that the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees now applies universally among the States that have adopted it. The only exceptions are in Turkey, which expressly maintains the geographical restriction; Madagascar, which maintains geographical restriction and has not adopted the Protocol; and Saint Kitts and Nevis, which has not adopted the Protocol […].