A recognised refugee (Beneficiary of international protection)

A recognised refugee is a foreign national who has been granted asylum pursuant to the Asylum Act (article 2, paragraph 6) for the term of validity according to the decision upon granting asylum.

Asylum shall be granted to a foreign national if it is established in the procedure for granting international protection that the foreign national is persecuted for exercising political rights and freedoms, or has a well-founded fear of being persecuted on the grounds of race, gender, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or for holding certain political opinions in the country of which he/she is a citizen or, if the foreign national is a stateless person, in the country of his/her last permanent residence.

Another reason for granting asylum may be for humanitarian purposes (in the case of illness, old age etc.) or toward family reunification (it is typically the recognised refugee’s spouse or partner, the recognised refugee’s unmarried child under 18 years of age or a parent of a recognised refugee under 18 years of age). There is no legal claim for granting asylum for humanitarian or family reunification reasons.

The Czech Republic may grant asylum to a foreign national who is recognized as a refugee in accordance with international agreeement according to the decision of UNHCR.

In the Czech Republic, a recognised refugee has the same rights as a foreign national with permitted permanent residence. A recognised refugee has no electoral rights nor can perform an occupation where Czech citizenship is required.

Sources of law:

• Article 2, paragraph 6, Article 12 to 16, Article 76, The Act No. 325/1999 Coll. on asylum and amendment (Asylum Act).