Humanitarian visa
Humanitarian visas are visas granted by some countries in order to fulfill their international obligation to protect refugees from persecution. The criteria in the Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees are often used in assessing whether or not there is a legitimate claim for protection. It defines a refugee as a person who:
- is outside their country of origin or legal residence
- is unable, or unwilling to return to their country of legal residence because of a legitimate fear of persecution regarding their race, religion, nationality, group membership, or a political belief, as defined by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
- has not been convicted of a serious crime by a fair tribunal.
Australia
In Australia, humanitarian visas are listed as “Subclass 200” and have several distinct forms:- 201: In-country Special Humanitarian Program Visa
- 202: Global Special Humanitarian Program Visa
- 203: Emergency Rescue Visa
- 204: Woman at Risk Visa
European Union
Belgium
In 2013, Belgium established a structural resettlement programme, initially agreeing to resettle 100 refugees. However, due to the Syrian refugee crisis, the Belgian Government announced in November 2014 that it would increase its 2015 resettlement quota to 300, of which 225 Syrians and 75 Congolese refugees. The final decision regarding Belgium's quota size and allocation of refugees belongs to the country's State Secretary for Asylum Policy and Migration.Belgium does not have any other such humanitarian admission programmes, and there is no explicit reference to a humanitarian visa in its legislation. However, on an ad hoc and discretionary basis, the State Secretary for Asylum Policy and Migration and the Federal Public Service Home Affairs grant visas on the basis of “humanitarian grounds," which are either short term or long term visas.
France
Between 2013 and 2016, France granted more than threethousand humanitarian visas to Syrian refugees to enter the country.Switzerland
is stricter in granting humanitarian visas, According to Swiss national law, Switzerland has the possibility to issue a humanitarian visa to individuals whose lives are imminently at risk, but the practice is very restrictive. Apart from a life-threatening situation, the State Secretariat for Migration generally requires that the individual has a link to Switzerland. In addition, the request for such a visa normally needs to be made in person at a Swiss representation.India
Following the overthrow of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan by the Taliban in August 2021, the government of India introduced an "e-Emergency X-Misc Visa", a type of humanitarian electronic visa, for nationals of Afghanistan.Russia
may issue humanitarian visas to stateless persons or citizens from countries such as the United States who may be considered potentially hostile, and traveling for a variety of reasons including cultural or political exchanges, sports events, scientific or technical conferences and providing temporary specialist services such as humanitarian relief.Americas
Argentina (Programa Siria)
Since 2014, Argentina has accepted asylum seekers originating from Syria through its humanitarian visa program Programa Siria, particularly for those affected by the conflict in Syria. Adopting a sponsorship resettlement model—as opposed to a traditional resettlement programme—Argentina's Programa Siria grants temporary humanitarian visas for Syrian nationals sponsored by Argentinean individuals, organizations, or institutions for their living costs; after the temporary visa expires, Syrians may apply for permanent residency.Since the program was adopted, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has worked with the Argentinian Government to strengthen and consolidate it and to assess the possibilities of expanding a similar model to refugees coming from others countries of asylum.