legal and social conditions for asylum seekers and refugees in ...

generate large-scale refugee flows. This requires in each case, that the government adopt a
resolution defining the criteria for granting temporary protection. So far, temporary protection has
only been used twice, i.e. for refugees from Guinea Bissau and for Kosovo Albanians.
The 1,271 Kosovo Albanians who came to Portugal under the UNHCR Humanitarian Evacuation
Programme in spring 1999 received temporary residence permits, valid for six months and which
could be renewed. They are allowed to work and are entitled to family reunification after 12
months. No individual asylum applications can be lodged during the period of temporary
protection.
Residence permit for humanitarian reasons
According to Section 8 of the Asylum Act, a residence permit for humanitarian reasons can be
granted to aliens and stateless persons who are not eligible for Convention status, but are not
allowed or are unable to return to the state of their nationality or their usual residence “for reasons
of serious insecurity emerging from armed conflicts or from the repeated outrage of human rights
that occurs thereon”.
The residence permit is granted by the Minister of Home Affairs upon proposal of the National
Commissioner for Refugees. Permits are for a maximum of five years and may be renewed
depending on the situation in the country of origin.
Exceptional residence permit for national interest or humanitarian reasons
In addition, an alien may also apply under Section 88 of the Aliens Act for an exceptional
residence permit for national interest or humanitarian reasons. In practice, this provision is
applied very restrictively by the Portuguese authorities, who do not take into account the
humanitarian reasons linked to the alien’s country of origin, but only those related to his/her stay
in Portugal, for example the fact that the alien has a serious disease preventing him/her to travel,
or that he/she is married with a Portuguese national or has lived in Portugal for a very long time.
There are no precise criteria and the decision to grant or refuse such residence permit is at the
Ministry of Home Affairs’ discretion.
Persons granted such status are issued with a residence permit valid for two years and
renewable for similar two-year periods.
Rejection at the border
The Aliens and Border Service (“Serviço de Estrangeiros e Fronteiras”), a body under the Ministry
of Home Affairs, has the responsibility for border control. According to Sections 9 to 16 of the
Aliens Act, the Aliens and Border Service can refuse entry into territory when a person:
– does not have a valid passport or travel document or visa;
– is not allowed to enter according to the Schengen common list or national list of nonadmissible
persons;
– does not show sufficient financial means to support him/herself during his/her stay in Portugal;
– has benefited from support to voluntary repatriation;
– has been expelled;
– could be a threat to national or European security;
– is an unaccompanied minor under 18 years of age without an appropriate adult to take
responsibility for him/herself inside the territory.
Sections 17 to 20 of the Asylum Act lays down a specific admissibility procedure applicable to
asylum claims submitted at the borders. According to these provisions, asylum seekers who have
lodged their claim at a border point – in most cases this happens at the Lisbon Airport – must
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