This Inform summarises the main findings of the EMN Study on ‘Beneficiaries of international protection travelling to and contacting authorities of their country of origin: challenges,policies and practices in the EU Member States, Norway andSwitzerland’
Key findings:
- To date, the exact number of beneficiaries of international protection travelling to their country of origin remains difficult to estimate.
- Where some evidence of contact with authorities and travelling to the country of origin become known, they are weighed differently by authorities in Member States, Norway and Switzerland.
- There are numerous reasons why beneficiaries of international protection travel to their country of origin. The most common motives for travel were to visiting family members, illness of close family members, and attending weddings or funerals.
- The assessment of a beneficiaries of international protection travel and of its impact on his/her protection status is generally a challenging task for national authorities, as is obtaining undisputable and objective evidence that the person had travelled to his/her country of origin.
- Most Member States consider travel to the country of origin as an indication that international protection may no longer be needed. While it could result in the start of a cessation procedure, the act alone was rarely enough to end international protection.
- Most Member States informed beneficiaries of international protection about the potential consequences of travelling to their country of origin by including travel limitations on the refugee travel document, indicating that it was not valid for travel to the country of origin.
- In all Member States, the withdrawal of protection status also can have consequences for the right of residence of a (former) beneficiary of international protection on the territory of the State concerned and may also affect the international
- A reassessment of international protection status, withdrawal of protection and/or end of right to stay of a (former) BIP could also affect the international protection status and right of residence of his/her family members and/or dependants.
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