Accession to the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol introduced international standards for asylum, subsequently reflected in the Asylum (Organization) Act of 2014, which for the first time set out formal procedures for status determination, defined the rights and obligations of recognized refugees and asylum-seekers, and exempted applicants from penalties for irregular entry. However, there have been increasing arrest and detention of refugees and asylum seekers due to expired or missing documents, in contradiction of non-penalization provision of the 1951 Convention, in the context of stringent collective measures against foreign nationals for perceived involvement in the conflict. While implementing regulations have elaborated application processes and institutional roles, the Act continues to restrict freedom of movement for refugees in certain regions. No dedicated domestic statute addresses statelessness, despite Sudan’s ratification of the 1954 and 1961 Statelessness Conventions, leaving individuals without nationality to rely on general immigration law for documentation and reside under temporary or ad hoc arrangements.

Sudan has extensive legal frameworks for Internally Displaced Persons in place such as the 2020 National Action Plan National Plan of the Sudan for protecting civilians after the exit of the African Union-United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID), the 2020 Juba Peace Agreement and the 2009 National Policy for Internally Displaced Persons (IDPS). A draft National Policy on Returnees and Internally Displaced Persons circulated in 2019 has not entered into force, and administrative support continues to be delivered through existing humanitarian and social-welfare mechanisms.