A_sample_1951_convention_travel_document

Australian Titres de Voyage Bio-data Page

The bio-data page of an New Zealand refugee travel document issued to a Chinese refugee

A refugee travel document (also called a 1951 Convention travel document or Geneva passport) is a

travel document A travel document is an identity document issued by a government or international entity pursuant to international agreements to enable individuals to clear border control measures. Travel documents usually assure other governments that the beare ...

issued to a

refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...

by the state which they normally reside in, allowing them to travel outside that state and to return there. Refugees are unlikely to be able to obtain

passport A passport is an official travel document issued by a government that certifies a person's identity and nationality for international travel. A passport allows its bearer to enter and temporarily reside in a foreign country, access local aid ...

s 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 The Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, also known as the 1951 Refugee Convention or the Geneva Convention of 28 July 1951 is a United Nations multilateral treaty that defines who a refugee is and sets out the rights of individuals ...

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 (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 * U.S. Refugee Travel Document (United States) * 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

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 visit

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. 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 Palestinian refugees are citizens of Mandatory Palestine, and their descendants, who fled or were expelled from their country, village or house over the course of the 1948 Palestine war and during the 1967 Six-Day War. Most Palestinian refug ...

are considered unacceptable travel documents for travel and entry to

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, unless they include an entry visa allowing the holder to enter

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

Gallery of Refugee Travel Documents

File:Australian Titres de Voyage Cover.jpg, Australian Refugee Travel Document File:German Passport Refugee 2017.jpg, German 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:Pabėgėlio kelionės dokumentas 2022 m.jpg, Lithuanian Refugee Travel Document File:Front cover of New Zealand Refugee Travel Document.png, New Zealand Refugee Travel Document File:Russia Travel Document.jpg, Russian Refugee Travel Document File:Reiseausweis Schweiz.jpg, Swiss Refugee Travel Document File:Ukrainian refugee travel document.jpg, Ukrainian Refugee Travel Document File:British Refugee Travel Document.jpg, United Kingdom Refugee Travel Document File:USCIS travel document.jpg, United States Travel Document

Footnotes

External links

from

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC; )Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program since 2015; the legal title is Department of Citizenship and Immigration (). is the Ministry ...

1951 Convention travel document
Images from Passportland.com {{Passports Refugee travel documents United Nations documents

Travel documents issued to refugees

Limitations of a refugee travel document compared to a passport

Gallery of Refugee Travel Documents

See also

National non-citizen travel documents

Footnotes

External links