Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees

Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees (and protocol)

parties to only the 1951 Convention   parties to only the 1967 Protocol   parties to both   non-members
Signed	28 July 1951 (13 January 1967)
Location	Geneva (New York)
Effective	22 April 1954 (4 October 1967)
Signatories	19
Parties	Convention: 145 Protocol: 146
Depositary	Secretary-General of the United Nations
Languages	English and French (Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish)

The Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees (also known as the New York Protocol) is a key treaty in international refugee law which entered into force on 4 October 1967. 146 countries are parties to the Protocol.

Where the 1951 United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees had restricted refugee status to those whose circumstances had come about "as a result of events occurring before 1 January 1951", as well as giving States party to the Convention the option of interpreting this as "events occurring in Europe" or "events occurring in Europe or elsewhere", the 1967 Protocol removed both the temporal and geographic restrictions. However, the Protocol gave those States which had previously ratified the 1951 Convention and chosen to use the geographically restricted definition the option to retain that restriction.

External links

• Introductory note by Guy S. Goodwin-Gill, procedural history note and audiovisual material on the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees in the Historic Archives of the United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law
• Lectures by Guy S. Goodwin-Gill entitled International Migration Law – A General Introduction and Forced Migration – The Evolution of International Refugee Law and Organization in the Lecture Series of the United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law
• Ratifications
• Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees of 31 January 1967 - English text