Date of publication:
09/24/2026
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (the)
Do domestic laws and policies provide for the exclusion from refugee status who are deemed ‘undeserving’ of international protection as refugees?
Assessment by population
Analysis
Paragraph 334 of the Immigration Rules states that a person will be granted refugee status in the United Kingdom if “they are a refugee, as defined in Article 1 of the 1951 Refugee Convention”.1 As the clause of the Refugee Convention excluding from refugee status a person who is not “deserving” of international protection (due to having committed a crime against peace, a war crime, or a crime against humanity; having committed a serious non-political crime outside the country of refuge prior to his admission to that country as a refugee; or being guilty of acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations) is contained in Article 1 (namely at clause F), paragraph 334 of the Immigration Rules will serve to exclude such a person.
In relation to situations where refugee status was nonetheless granted, paragraph 338A of the Immigration Rules states that “[a] person’s grant of refugee status under paragraph 334 must be revoked if any of paragraphs 339A, 339AA, 339AB or 339AC apply. Paragraph 339AA reads: “This paragraph applies where the Secretary of State is satisfied that the person should have been, or is, excluded from being a refugee in accordance with […] Article 1F of the Refugee Convention, as defined in section 36 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022”2
Section 36 of the Nationality and Borders Act 2022 replicates Article 12 of the EU Qualification Directive, with some changes to include UK-specific references to when a refugee is considered to be admitted for the purposes of Article 1F(b) of the Refugee Convention. UNHCR has previously raised concerns that a similar interpretation provided for under the Qualification Directive is inconsistent with the geographical and temporal limitations in Article 1F(b) of the 1951 Refugee Convention, in that it interprets “outside the country of refuge prior to his or her admission as a refugee” as including time in the country of refuge prior to the issuing of refugee status.3
- 1Immigration Rules, Part 11: Asylum. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/immigration-rules-part-11-asylum.
- 2Immigration Rules, Part 11: Asylum. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/immigration-rules-part-11-asylum.
- 3UNHCR, Annotated Comments on the EC Council Directive 2004/83/EC of 29 April 2004 on Minimum Standards for the Qualification and Status of Third Country Nationals or Stateless Persons as Refugees or as Persons who otherwise need International Protection and the Content of the Protection granted (OJ L 304/12 of 30.9.2004), p. 27. Available at: https://www.unhcr.org/en-ie/43661eee2.pdf.
Related provisions of domestic law or policy
Immigration Rules
- Year: 2016
- Type: Domestic law
- Rights Category: Documentation
- Link to external source: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/immigration-rules/immigration-rules-part-11-asylum
Legal provision
Immigration Rules - Generic
Immigration Rules - Generic
Immigration Act 2016 (amended)
- Year: 2016
- Type: Domestic law
- Rights Category: Asylum
- Link to external source: https://www.refworld.org/node/115519
Legal provision
Immigration Act 2016 - Generic
Immigration Act 2016 - Generic
Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002
- Year: 2002
- Type: Domestic law
- Rights Category: Asylum
- Link to external source: https://www.refworld.org/node/9272
Legal provision
Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 - Generic
Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 - Generic
Immigration Act 2014 (modified)
- Year: 2014
- Type: Domestic law
- Rights Category: Asylum
- Link to external source: https://www.refworld.org/node/100486
Legal provision
Immigration Act 2014 - Generic
Immigration Act 2014 - Generic
Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 (amended and repealed in part)
- Year: 1999
- Type: Domestic law
- Rights Category: Asylum, Documentation
- Link to external source: https://www.refworld.org/node/76948
Legal provision
Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 - Generic
Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 - Generic
Borders Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009
- Year: 2009
- Type: Domestic law
- Rights Category: Nationality, Integration & Public Affairs, Documentation
- Link to external source: https://www.refworld.org/node/68805
Legal provision
Borders Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009 - Generic
Borders Citizenship and Immigration Act 2009 - Generic
Immigration Act 1971 (amended and repealed in part)
- Year: 1971
- Type: Domestic law
- Rights Category: Asylum
- Link to external source: https://www.refworld.org/node/103211
Legal provision
Immigration Act 1971 - Generic
Immigration Act 1971 - Generic