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

SPAIN
LEGAL CONDITIONS
The legal basis
– The 1951 Geneva Convention and 1967 New York Protocol;
– Section 13(4) of the 1978 Spanish Constitution, which states: “The law shall establish the terms
under which citizens of other countries and stateless persons may enjoy the right of asylum in
Spain”;
– The Act No. 5/1984 regulating the Right of Asylum and Refugee Status, as amended by Act No.
9/1994 (the Asylum Act);
– The Asylum Regulation approved by Royal Decree No. 203/1995;
– The Organic Law No. 4/2000 on Rights and Freedoms of Foreigners in Spain and their Social
Integration (the Aliens Act).
This Act entered into force on 1 February 2000. Following the general elections held in March
2000, the new Spanish government has indicated its intention to amend the new Aliens Act in a
more restrictive way. At the time of writing, however, it is not possible to describe the proposed
amendments. Information will be available from CEAR at a later stage.
– The Aliens Regulation, approved by Royal Decree No. 155 of 2 February 1996.
This regulation, based on the previous Aliens Act, should, in principle, be replaced by a new
regulation to be adopted within six months following the entry into force of the new Aliens Act, i.e.
before 1 August 2000. However, since the Spanish government has announced its intention to
amend first the Aliens Act, it is likely that this time limit will not be met.
– The Schengen Agreement and Dublin Convention.
Refugee status
The only refugee status granted in Spain is Convention status.
According to Section 2(1) of the Asylum Act, “[t]he right of asylum provided for in Section 13(4) of
the Constitution is the protection granted to foreigners who are recognised refugee status and
consists in them being neither expulsed nor returned under the terms of Article 33(1) of the
Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, made in Geneva on 28 July 1951, and the
adoption of following measures:
(a) permission for residence in Spain;
(b) issuance of necessary identity and travel documents;
(c) permission for carrying out labour, professional or mercantile activities;
(d) any other measures which may be included in international instruments relating to refugees
to which Spain is party”.
According to Section 2(2) of the Asylum Act, refugees are entitled to social assistance as
established by regulation. In practice, since the entry into force of the new Aliens Act, all aliens
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Spain