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A refugee travel document (also called a 1951 Convention travel document or Geneva passport) is a travel document issued to a
File:Front cover of a Canadian travel document issued to refugees under the 1951 convention.jpg, Canadian Refugee Travel Document
File:Irish refugee travel document.png, Irish Refugee Travel Document
File:Japan Refugee Travel Document 2009.png, Japanese Refugee Travel Document
File:Australian Titres de Voyage Cover.jpg, Australian Refugee Travel Document
Certificate of Identity(COI)
from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
1951 Convention travel document
Images from Passportland.com Refugee travel documents United Nations documents {{UN-stub
A refugee travel document (also called a 1951 Convention travel document or Geneva passport) is a travel document issued to a refugee
A refugee, conventionally speaking, is a displaced person who has crossed national borders and who cannot or is unwilling to return home due to well-founded fear of persecution.
by the state in which they normally reside in allowing them to travel outside that state and to return there. Refugees are unlikely to be able to obtain passports from their state of nationality (from which they have sought asylum) and therefore need travel documents so that they might engage in international travel.
The 145 states which are parties to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees are obliged to issue travel documents to refugees lawfully resident in their territory.
Refugee travel documents are passport-like booklets. Their cover bears the words "Travel Document" in English and French
French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to France
** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents
** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...
(and often in the language of the issuing state), as well as the date of the convention: 28 July 1951. The documents were originally grey, though some countries now issue them in other colours, with two diagonal lines in the upper left corner of the front cover. Bearers enjoy certain visa-free travel privileges extended by signatories to the convention.
However, as a refugee travel document is not a regular national passport, some problems may be encountered by the holder from time to time, for example due to non-familiarity of airline staff with such documents.
Travel documents issued to refugees
* New Zealand Refugee Travel Document *Estonian travel document for refugees
An Estonian travel document for refugees is an internationally recognised travel document issued to refugees by the Police and Border Guard Board of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in Estonia in accordance to the 1951 United Nations Convent ...
* U.S Refugee Travel Document (United States) visa not required for Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Croatia, Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary and Cyprus.
* Australian Convention Travel Document. This document by itself does not allow the bearer to return to Australia; for that, a separate visa must be obtained.
*Swiss Travel Document A Swiss travel document is a paper allowing travel by political refugees and foreigners living in Switzerland with B (Right to Stay) or C (permanent resident) permits who do not have national passports. The holder of a travel document for refugees ...
Limitations of a refugee travel document compared to a passport
*Refugee travel documents issued by the Government of Canada cannot be used for travel to the bearer’s country of citizenship, and a refugee travel document issued by another country is not treated as a valid passport for the purposes of obtaining an Electronic Travel Authorization to visitCanada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...
. Given that bearers of refugee travel documents are not citizens of the issuing country they may need to apply for a visa before travelling to Canada.
*Egyptian travel documents issued for Palestinian refugees are considered unacceptable travel documents for travel and entry to New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 List of islands of New Zealand, smaller islands. It is the ...
, unless they include an entry visa allowing the holder to enter Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...
.Gallery of Refugee Travel Documents
See also
* Australian Convention Travel Document * Refugee identity certificate * Travel document * 1954 Convention Travel Document, for stateless persons *Certificate of identity
A certificate of identity, sometimes called an alien's passport, is a travel document issued by a country to non-citizens (also called aliens) residing within their borders who are stateless persons or otherwise unable to obtain a passport ...
, for stateless persons or others
* Nansen passport, the predecessor of the refugee travel document
National non-citizen travel documents
* Canadian Certificate of Identity * Japan Re-entry Permit * Australian Certificate of Identity. This document by itself does not allow the bearer to return to Australia; for that, a separate visa must be obtained.Footnotes
External links
from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
1951 Convention travel document
Images from Passportland.com Refugee travel documents United Nations documents {{UN-stub