Seychelles is an archipelagic state in the central Indian Ocean, northeast of Madagascar and east of mainland African countries such as Tanzania, Kenya, and Somalia. Comprising 115 islands, Seychelles has no land borders. While the country has a small population and no significant history of hosting large displaced populations, it has acceded to several key international instruments relevant to refugee protection and statelessness.

Seychelles is a party to the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol, as well as the 1969 OAU Convention, without any reservations. Although there are no known refugees or asylum seekers in the country at present, Seychelles has allowed individuals seeking protection to remain, processed under UNHCR’s mandate, as no national asylum framework exists. Occasional arrivals from the Horn of Africa and other regions are accommodated within communities under general immigration law, without camps or settlements. Draft legislation to formalize an asylum system has been discussed intermittently but remains unadopted.