Population figures
Total country population
1,538,200
Forcibly displaced population
Refugees (under UNHCR's mandate):
3,282
Asylum-seekers:
31,260
IDPs (of concern to UNHCR):
0
Other people in need of international protection:
5,517
Other
Statelessness persons
0
Host community
0
Others of concern to UNHCR
1,208
Country context
The Republic of Trinidad and Tobago is a twin-island Caribbean state lying just off the northern edge of the South American mainland, approximately 11 km northeast of Venezuela and some 130 km south of Grenada, with maritime boundaries extending toward Guyana and Barbados. Comprising the larger island of Trinidad and its smaller counterpart Tobago, the country occupies a strategic position at the southern end of the Lesser Antilles, where the Caribbean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean.
Trinidad and Tobago became the 140th country to sign the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol. The country acceded to the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and its 1967 Protocol in November 2000. Trinidad and Tobago succeeded to the 1954 Convention relating to the Status of Stateless Persons in 1966, but is not yet a State party to the
1961 Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness.
Currently, in the absence of domestic implementing legislation for the protection of refugees or the granting of asylum under the international refugee instruments, persons in need of international protection remain subject to the provisions of the 1976 Immigration Act. The Government adopted a National Policy to Address Refugee and Asylum Matters in the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, which was formally adopted in June 2014, and which foresees the development of a functioning asylum system. The new Refugee Policy provides for the phased transfer of responsibility for refugee status determination (RSD) from UNHCR to the Government. It includes capacity building, the adoption of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), the enactment of legislation and the creation of a Refugee Unit within the Immigration Division.
Trinidad and Tobago is both a destination and a transit country for large numbers of undocumented migrants, many of whom come to the country looking for economic opportunities, as its booming construction and energy sectors have raised the country’s economic status in the Caribbean region. Within this mixed migration context, an increasing number of persons in need of international protection have been identified. Trinidad and Tobago is well connected through air travel routes and its proximity to the coast of Venezuela also makes it feasible for persons moving from or transiting through Latin America to arrive by boat.
