Date of publication:
09/24/2026
Lebanon
Do domestic laws and policies provide for protection from expulsion of refugees?
Assessment by population
Analysis
Article 17 of the Law on Entry and Exit provides that a foreign national shall be expelled from Lebanon if the presence of that foreign national is considered to be a threat to public security. Article 31 provides that in the event that a former political refugee is expelled, he or she may not be removed to the territory of a country where his or her life or freedom is threatened. The law, however, does not detail the grounds for ending the protection of a political refugee, nor any procedural safeguards for the expulsion. The absence of a specific domestic law mirroring Article 32 of the 1951 Refugee Convention, which outlines the procedures for expelling refugees with safeguards like due process and the right to appeal, is a significant gap.
Related provisions of domestic law or policy
Law Regulating the Entry of Foreign Nationals into, Their Residence in and Their Departure from Lebanon
- Year: 1962
- Type: Domestic law
- Rights Category: Asylum, Documentation
- Link to external source: https://www.refworld.org/legal/legislation/natlegbod/1962/11052
Legal provision
Article 17 - Expulsion
A foreign national shall be deported from Lebanon if the presence of that foreign national is considered to be a threat to public security. The Directeur de la Sûreté Générale is required immediately to submit to the Ministre de l’Intérieur a copy of his or her decision. Deportation shall be effected either by notification of the person affected of the order to leave Lebanon within the time set by the Directeur de la Sûreté Générale or by having the person deported taken to the border by the Forces de la Sécurité Intérieure.
Article 31 - Protection from expulsion
In the event that a former political refugee is deported, he or she may not be removed to the territory of a country where his or her life or freedom is threatened.