Date of publication:

09/07/2026

Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)

Do domestic laws and policies provide for protection from refoulement?

ANALYSIS

Assessment by population

Assessment by population
Refugees
Asylum-seekers
Analysis

Article 7 of the Organic Law on Refugees and Asylees prohibits the return of applicants for refugee status to territories where the situation of risk to their life, liberty, or physical integrity originated.

Article 2.3 provides for the principle of non-refoulement within Venezuela’s international protection framework. 

    LAW & POLICY

    Related provisions of domestic law or policy

    Organic Law on Refugees and Asylees
    • Year: 2001
    • Type: Domestic law
    • Rights Category: Asylum, Education, Freedom of movement, Health, Housing, land & property, Liberty & security of person, Nationality, Integration & Public Affairs, Social protection, Work & Workplace rights, Family life, Documentation
    • Link to external source: https://www.refworld.org/node/18314

    Legal provision

    Article 7 - Non-refoulement

    (Unofficial translation) Any person requesting refugee status may not be rejected or subjected to any measure that compels them to return to the territory where their life, physical integrity, or personal liberty is at risk due to the reasons mentioned in Article 5. However, the benefits of this provision may not be invoked by a person who is considered, for well-founded reasons, a danger to the security of the Republic or who, having been sentenced to death for a particularly serious crime, constitutes a threat to the community of the country. Toda persona que solicite la condición de refugiado o refugiada no podrá ser rechazada o sujeta a medida alguna que le obligue a retornar al territorio donde su vida, integridad física o su libertad personal esté en riesgo a causa de las razones mencionadas en el artículo 5. Sin embargo, no podrá invocar los beneficios de la presente disposición la persona que sea considerada por razones fundadas como un peligro para la seguridad de la República o que habiendo sido objeto de una sentencia definitiva por un delito particularmente grave, constituya una amenaza para la comunidad del país.

    Article 2.1; 2.2; 2.3; 2.4 - Fundamental principles

    "(Unofficial translation) The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela recognizes and guarantees the right to asylum and refuge, in accordance with the following principles: 1. Any person may request refuge in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela due to well-founded fears of being persecuted for the reasons and under the conditions established in the 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees. 2. Any person may request asylum in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, as well as in its diplomatic missions, warships, and military aircraft abroad, when persecuted for political reasons or offenses under the conditions established in this Law." 3. No asylum-seeker or applicant for refugee status shall be rejected or subjected to any measure that would compel them to return to a territory where their life, physical integrity, or freedom would be at risk for the reasons set out in this Law. 4. No authority shall impose any sanction on persons seeking refugee status or asylum on account of their irregular entry into or stay within the territory of the Republic, in accordance with the terms established in this Law. "La República Bolivariana de Venezuela reconoce y garantiza el derecho de asilo y refugio, de conformidad con los siguientes principios: 1. Toda persona puede solicitar refugio en la República Bolivariana de Venezuela, debido a fundados temores de ser perseguido por los motivos y condiciones establecidos en el Protocolo de 1967 sobre el Estatuto de los Refugiados. 2. Toda persona puede solicitar asilo en la República Bolivariana de Venezuela, así como en sus misiones diplomáticas, navíos de guerra y aeronaves militares en el exterior, cuando sea perseguida por motivos o delitos políticos en las condiciones establecidas en esta Ley. 3. Ninguna persona solicitante de refugio o de asilo será rechazada o sujeta a medida alguna que le obligue a retornar al territorio donde su vida, integridad física o su libertad esté en riesgo a causa de los motivos mencionados en esta Ley. 4. Ninguna autoridad podrá imponer sanción alguna, por causa del ingreso o permanencia irregular en el territorio de la República de personas que soliciten la condición de refugiado – refugiada o asilado - asilada, según los términos establecidos en esta Ley.