In 1999, the Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina adopted the first law in the field of international protection called the Law on Immigration and Asylum. In 2003, that law was replaced by the Law on the Movement and Residence of Foreigners and Asylum, and in 2008 a new law of the same name was passed. From then until today, a whole series of regulations have been adopted that regulate the area of immigration and asylum in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Law on the Movement and Residence of Foreigners and Asylum is not fully harmonized with the relevant legislation of the European Union, and new laws are in the process of being passed which will also separately regulate the matter of international protection (asylum) and foreigners in general.
Until June 30, 2004, the refugee status of international protection seekers was determined by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), because Bosnia and Herzegovina did not have the built-in capacities to perform this duty through its own bodies. From 1999 to June 30, 2006, UNHCR recognized refugee status in BiH for a total of 390 persons.
At the end of 2004, UNHCR and the Ministry of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina signed a Protocol on the Transfer of Refugee Status Determination and Other Asylum-Related Responsibilities. The number of persons who requested international protection in BiH since 2004 is as follows: in 2004 – 301 persons; 2005 – 146 persons; 2006 – 69 persons; 2007 – 581 persons; 2008 – 95 people; 2009 – 71 people; 2010 – 64 people; 2011 – 46 people; 2012 – 53 people; 2013 – 100 people. In the mentioned period (2004–2013), the Asylum Sector of the Ministry of Security granted refugee status to 10 persons, and subsidiary protection was granted to 57 persons.
According to the provisions of the Law on the Movement and Residence of Foreigners and Asylum, international protection is a status that the competent authority in Bosnia and Herzegovina recognizes for a refugee or a foreigner who meets the conditions for subsidiary protection; if a foreigner - an asylum seeker - is granted a request for international protection (asylum) after the procedure has been completed, such a person will be granted refugee status or subsidiary protection status. In BiH, the name "applicant for international protection" is used for the asylum seeker. This is a foreigner who can be considered to be seeking refugee status or subsidiary protection in BiH until a decision is made on his request in accordance with this Law.
THE PROCEDURE: The intention to submit a request for international protection (asylum) is expressed to the Border Police or the Service for Affairs with Foreigners, i.e. to its nearest field office. After that, the asylum seeker is issued a certificate of expressed intention and is given the direction of movement and the deadline in which he must personally submit the request for international protection (asylum) to the Asylum Sector of the Ministry of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Asylum Sector of the Ministry of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina is obliged to register and issue a card to the asylum seeker. The registration procedure includes: filling out the registration form, photographing the asylum seeker, taking fingerprints, copying personal and other documents, and issuing the asylum seeker card to the applicant for asylum. The card is considered a residence permit while the asylum application process continues, and is valid for up to three months and can be extended.
After registration, the Asylum Sector of the BiH Ministry of Security schedules and conducts an interview. An interview is a detailed conversation that is also the most important step in the decision-making process for a request for international protection. It enables the asylum seeker to state the reasons for submitting an asylum application, and if necessary, more detailed interviews can be conducted in order to fully and correctly determine the factual situation. The interview is also attended by legal representatives, who at the end of the interview have the right to ask additional questions to the asylum seeker, and UNHCR representatives.
After the procedure for the application for international protection has been carried out, the competent Asylum Sector of the Ministry of Security of BiH determines whether the applicant for international protection meets the conditions for granting refugee status or the status of subsidiary protection, as well as whether there are conditions for the protection of the applicant in the event that his application for asylum is rejected. international protection, that is, whether there are reasons for applying the principle immense refoulment. The most significant decisions are the decisions by which the request for international protection is accepted and the foreigner is recognized with refugee status in BiH or subsidiary protection status. The Ministry can also, in prescribed cases, reject the submitted request with a decision, that is, with a conclusion. The law prescribes the possibility of rejecting the request, while at the same time determining that the foreigner cannot be removed from Bosnia and Herzegovina, because that would violate the principle of non-refoulement.
The decision of the Asylum Sector of the Ministry of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina is final, and an asylum seeker who is not satisfied with it can use a legal remedy, i.e. submit a lawsuit to the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina within 60 days. The lawsuit has a suspensory effect, and until the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina decides on it, the asylum seeker cannot be expelled from Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the case of a negative decision of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the asylum seeker has the possibility of using an extraordinary legal remedy before the Appellate Council of the Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, he can submit an appeal to the Constitutional Court of Bosnia and Herzegovina, or an application to the European Court of Human Rights, or a complaint to the UN Human Rights Committee. Particularly important in this context is the possibility of submitting a request for a temporary ban on deportation to the European Court of Human Rights, in accordance with Rule 39 of the Rules of the Court, or a similar request to the UN Human Rights Committee in accordance with Article 92 of the Rules of the Committee. Both funds were successfully used by asylum seekers in BiH, through their legal representatives in the "Your Rights BiH" Association.
THE RIGHTS: Asylum seekers have the right to: stay in Bosnia and Herzegovina until the procedure for applying for international protection is completed with a final or binding decision; accommodation in the center for international protection seekers, in accordance with the available capacities; access to the education system; free legal assistance on issues related to the procedure; translator or interpreter services; primary health care; social protection in the sense of securing the right to a temporary guardian; and the right to food as well as means of hygiene during the time they are housed in the center for seekers of international protection. The Ministry of Security of Bosnia and Herzegovina bears the costs incurred in exercising these rights. This refers to the costs required for hiring a translator or interpreter in the procedure for the request for international protection, and the costs related to the health services provided by health institutions within the right to primary health care. The Ministry also, with the help of UNHCR, financially ensures the realization of the right to accommodation, food and hygiene in the Asylum Center for seekers of international protection. In August 2014, a new and modern asylum center was opened in Delijaš, near Trnovo, which has 150 beds.
Association Vaša prava BiH
Association "Vaša prava BiH" with headquarters in Sarajevo is a leading non-governmental and non-profit organization that provides free assistance to users throughout the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and in the last fifteen years has developed into an effective network of legal and informational assistance centers with 35 employees in 9 offices and over 120 mobile teams throughout BiH. Since 1996, the association has provided assistance to about 450.000 refugees, returnees, displaced persons, minority groups and groups of endangered domicile population in legal matters such as: restitution of property, social, economic and cultural rights, discrimination in access to employment, utilities, education and social assistance, as well as other human rights guaranteed by the European Convention on the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms and other international legal instruments. On the basis of the signed Protocol with the State Ministry of Security, the association "Vaša prava BiH" provides free legal assistance to victims of human trafficking, asylum seekers in BiH and other persons under international protection in BiH. In addition, in accordance with the Protocol with the Ministry for Refugees and Displaced Persons, users who are under the jurisdiction of this Ministry also receive legal assistance from the association.
