Refugee Status

Who Qualifies

You qualify for refugee status if you meet all of the following:

1. Well-founded fear of persecution — You must have a genuine, objectively reasonable fear of being persecuted for one of five protected reasons:

• Race
• Religion
• Nationality
• Political opinion
• Membership of a particular social group

"Persecution" is a high threshold — it means serious violations of fundamental human rights, not mere discrimination or hardship. The fear must be based on facts, not speculation.

2. Nexus to a protected ground — Your persecution must be connected to one of the five grounds above. For example, if you are persecuted because of your political opposition to your government, that qualifies; if you are persecuted for criminal activity unrelated to any protected ground, it does not.

3. Outside your country of nationality — You must be physically outside your home country. If you hold multiple nationalities, you must be outside all of them (unless one does not persecute you and you can access its protection).

4. Unable or unwilling to access state protection — You must show that your own government is unable or unwilling to protect you from persecution. This is a critical requirement: if your state can and will protect you, you do not qualify as a refugee, even if you face private persecution.

5. Not excluded — You are automatically excluded from refugee status if you:

• Are receiving protection or assistance from UN organs or agencies (other than UNHCR)
• Have been recognised as a national by another country
• Have committed crimes against peace, war crimes, crimes against humanity, or serious non-political crimes
• Have incited or participated in such crimes
• Have acted contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations

Age and Capacity

You must be 18 years of age or older to make an application on your own behalf. If you are under 18, a parent or legal guardian applies on your behalf, and you are automatically included in their application (unless you are an Irish citizen).

Admissibility Bars

Your application will be deemed inadmissible (rejected without full examination) if:

• Another EU member state has already granted you refugee status or subsidiary protection
• A non-EU country has recognised you as a refugee and that protection is still available to you, or you enjoy sufficient protection in that country
• You are subject to the EU Dublin Regulation and another EU member state is responsible for examining your claim (typically the country where you first entered the EU)

If your application is inadmissible, you may be transferred to the responsible country.

Safe Country of Origin Designation

If you are a national of a designated safe country of origin, your application will be processed on an accelerated track. As of March 2026, the following countries are designated as safe: Albania, Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Egypt, Georgia, India, Kosovo, Malawi, Morocco, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and South Africa.

If you are from a safe country, you must demonstrate serious grounds for considering your country not to be safe in your particular circumstances — a higher burden than standard applicants. This means you must show that despite the country's general safety, you personally face persecution that the state cannot prevent.

Nationality-Specific Variations

There are no nationality-specific eligibility variations. The refugee definition applies equally to all nationalities. However, nationals of designated safe countries face accelerated processing and a higher evidentiary burden.