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European Organization of Iranian Refugees
working with iranian asylum seekers and refugees
Iranian Refugees 1982-2009Migration Policy InstituteUNHCR
Iranian Refugees 1982-2009

At the end of 2009, based on data received or estimated by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the number of Iranian refugees was 72,773 of which 15,097 were assisted by the UNHCR. According to the same source at the end of this year there were 43.3 million forcibly displaced people worldwide, including 10.4 million refugees who fall under UNHCR’s mandate, some 4.8 million Palestinian refugees under the responsibility of the U. N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and 27.1 million people displaced within their country as a result of armed conflict.


Iranian refugees (2000-2009)

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

86,286

92,398

137,948

132,491

115,149

98,722

102,483

68,397

69,061

72,773

Assisted by UNHCR

26,218

26,063

22,704

21,934

12,122

15,783

14,353

14,120

13,851

15,097


During 2009, 15,890 first instance or appeal applications for asylum or refugee status were submitted by Iranians to Governments or UNHCR offices. During the same year, first instance or appeal applications submitted by all nationalities in 159 countries amounted to 922,500.


Applications filed by Iranians in Industrialized Countries (1982-2009)

Total: 450,874

 In 2009, the five destination countries that received the largest numbers of new applications from Iranians were the United Kingdom (2,130), Turkey (1,198), Iraq (1,181), Germany(1,170), and Sweden (1,144). Sevencountries receiving most of the new asylum applications from all nationalities were South Africa (222,000), United States (47,900), France (42,100), Malaysia-UNHCR (40,000), Equador (35,500), Canada (34,000), and United Kingdom (29,800).

Twelve main destination countries of new asylum applications from Iran (1999-2009)

United Kingdom, Turkey/UNHCR, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Austria, Slovenia, USA, Norway, Cyprus, and Canada. Norway


2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

TOTAL

UK

5,610

3,415

2,685

3,495

3,975

3,480

2,675

2,510

2,585

2,130

32,560

TUR

3,860

3,385

2,505

3,092

2,029

1,716

2,297

1,687

2,116

1,198

23,885

GFR

4,878

3,455

2,642

2,053

1,369

916

609

616

815

1,170

18,523

BEL

3,183

1,164

743

1,153

512

497

631

411

614

732

9,640

NLD

2,543

1,519

663

555

450

557

921

187

322

502

8,219

SWE

739

780

762

787

660

582

494

485

799

1,144

7,232

AUS

2,559

734

760

981

347

306

274

248

250

340

6,779

SVN

5,924

272

61

88

6

0

0

0

0

0

6,351

USA

870

944

880

654

421

337

388

303

334

344

5,475

NOR

327

412

450

621

394

279

218

222

720

574

4,217

CYP

214

687

388

465

668

569

305

475

213

171

4,155

CAN

767

768

381

308

342

343

237

220

267

310

3,943



Five top destination countries of new asylum applications from Iran (2000-2009)

United Kingdom, Turkey/UNHCR, Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands

Of 13,752 decisions taken on Iranian asylum applications in 2009, including cases from previous years, some 4,674 resulted in refugee status, 755 decisions resulted in humanitarian status, 7,364 cases were rejected, and 2,427 cases were closed on other grounds. When cases closed on other non-substantive grounds are excluded, the global Convention recognition percentage for Iranian asylum applicants during 2009 amounted to 36.5%, whereas the total recognition percentage, including grants of humanitarian status, amounted to 44.2%.

In total, the global refugee recognition rate for all nationalities in 2009 amounted to 38%. When asylum-seekers allowed to remain on humanitarian grounds are included, the recognition rate was 47%.

Total recognition percentages (2000-2009) (refugee status/refugee& humanitarian status)

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

 

34/41

29/34

28/33

27/30

23/27

21/28

30/37

33/41

36/44

37/44

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Some examples of first instance total recognition rates (refugee & humanitarian) for Iranian applications in 2009 were: Australia (91%), Austria (63%), Canada (90%),France (43%), Germany (52%), Netherlands (45%), Sweden (23%), Turkey-UNHCR (84%), UK (20%), and USA-INS (98%).

First instance recognition percentages (refugee & humanitarian) in 10 main destination countries from Iran (2000-2009)


2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

UK

29

17

n/a

9

9

14

17

24

27

20

TUR/U*

(57)63

(70)70

(72)n/a

(79)84

(75)53

(67)78

(90)82

(88)91

(n/a)85

(n/a)84

GFR

21

21

19

11

12

17

18

27

29

52

BEL

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

9

20

24

14

15

31

NLD

71

8

8

25

34

41

33

46

44

45

SWE

9

37

15

10

7

16

29

30

24

23

AUS

15

n/a

n/a

62

79

87

78

89

73

63

SVN

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

USA

66

71

n/a

48

54

49

55

63

74

98

NOR

18

n/a

n/a

25

n/a

20

19

26

38

12

CYP

18

n/a

n/a

1

n/a

12

12

0

7

6

CAN

70

70

66

67

68

84

84

84

92

90

* Figures in parenthesis are from UNHCR-Turkey and right-side figures are from the Statistical Unit of UNHCR Head Quarters.


During 2009, a total of 112,400 refugees were admitted by 19 resettlement countries, including the United States of America (79,900), Australia (11,100), Canada (12,500), and Australia (11,100). Some 84,000 who were resettled with UNHCR’s assistance were mostly from Myanmar (24,800), Iraq (23,000), Bhutan (17,500), and Somalia (5,500), Eritrea (2,500), and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (2,500).

In 2009, 1,696 Iranians were resettled from Turkey (1,575) and Iraq (35) in various countries with UNHCR’s assistance. In addition to Iranians referred to the United States by the UNHCR in Turkey, the United States also resettled Iranian religious minorities as persons of special concern who applied directly to the U.S. program for refugee processing in Austria. 5,381 Iranians were admitted to the U.S. as refugees in FY 2009.

UNHCR assisted resettlement of Iranian refugees (2000-2009)


2000

2001

2002

 2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

    total

2,380

 3,073 

3,502

 2,831

2673

2191

1223

1501

1688

1,285

Turkey

1,980

2,206

2,349

2560

2032

1,083

1421

1,546

1,190

1,575

Iraq

413

752

314


47

22

-

-

95

35

Pakistan

386

579

378

66

39

54

15

-

-

-

other

101

166

102

74

58

103

80

142

-

86


Iranians resettled in the United States (1983-2009)

83-98

1999

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

42,957

1,737

5,099

6,581

1,525

2,471

1,787

1,856

2,792

5,481

5,270

5,381


 

2009 Global Trends: Refugees, Asylum-seekers, Returnees, Internally Displaced and Stateless Persons , 15 June 2010

2008 Global Trends: Refugees, Asylum-seekers, Returnees, Internally Displaced and Stateless Persons , 16 June 2009


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