The application process, stage by stage
1. Make the application in the country where you are
Asylum (international protection) is claimed in the country where you are physically present — at the border, at an airport, at a police or immigration office, or at the designated protection office. Say clearly that you fear returning to your country and wish to apply for international protection. There is no fee. Applying as early as possible avoids questions later about why you delayed.
2. Registration, fingerprints and first interview
You are registered, photographed and usually fingerprinted, and you receive a temporary permission to remain while the claim is decided. In Europe, fingerprints are checked against Eurodac under the Dublin III Regulation to determine which State is responsible for examining the claim. You may be asked short preliminary questions about your identity, travel route and reasons for fleeing.
3. Complete the questionnaire or statement of claim
Most systems require a written questionnaire or statement setting out your identity, family, journey and the harm you fear. This document anchors everything that follows, so it must be complete, chronological and consistent with your documents. Interviewers compare your later evidence with what you wrote here.
4. The substantive interview
A caseworker interviews you in detail, with an interpreter if needed. Expect questions about dates, places, names, who harmed you or threatened you, whether you went to the police, and why you cannot relocate elsewhere in your country. Ask for a copy of the interview record and correct any errors in writing as soon as possible.
5. Evidence and country of origin information
Decision-makers weigh your account against objective country of origin information (COI). Supporting evidence can include identity and travel documents, police or court papers, medical and psychological reports, membership or employment records, photographs, threatening messages, witness affidavits and reliable reports on conditions in your country.
6. The decision
You may be granted refugee status, granted subsidiary or complementary protection, granted permission to remain on humanitarian grounds, or refused. The decision letter sets out the findings — read it carefully, because any appeal must answer those specific findings.
7. Appeal after a refusal
Refusals carry a strict appeal deadline, often between a few days and one month depending on the country and whether the claim was treated as accelerated. An effective appeal addresses each refusal reason, corrects gaps or misunderstandings from the interview, submits new evidence, and argues the risk of harm on return (non-refoulement).
Who qualifies: the legal grounds
Refugee status (1951 Convention)
A well-founded fear of persecution for reasons of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership of a particular social group — including gender, sexual orientation, family membership and other defining characteristics — where your State cannot or will not protect you.
Subsidiary / complementary protection
Where you do not meet the refugee definition but face a real risk of serious harm on return: the death penalty or execution, torture or inhuman or degrading treatment, or a serious individual threat from indiscriminate violence in armed conflict.
Non-refoulement
No State may return a person to a place where they face persecution, torture or inhuman or degrading treatment. This obligation arises under the 1951 Convention, the Convention Against Torture Article 3, and regional instruments such as ECHR Article 3.
Humanitarian or compassionate leave
Many countries can grant permission to remain on other grounds: length of residence, family and private life, children's best interests, serious medical need, or the practical impossibility of safe return.
What to prepare before your interview
- A dated timeline of every incident: what happened, where, who was involved.
- Identity, nationality and travel documents, plus any originals you still hold.
- Documents about the harm feared: police reports, court summons, medical records, threats received by message or letter.
- Proof of the characteristic you are persecuted for — membership cards, publications, employment records, statements from people who know you.
- Country of origin information from reputable sources covering the last five years.
- An explanation of why internal relocation within your country would not be safe or reasonable.
Common reasons claims are refused
- Inconsistent dates or details between the questionnaire, interview and documents.
- Vague accounts that do not link the harm feared to a Convention ground.
- No explanation of why State protection is unavailable.
- A finding that relocation elsewhere in the country is possible.
- Late disclosure of central facts without explaining the delay.
- Missing corroborating evidence that could reasonably have been obtained.
Prepare your claim with GIFTCLA
Select the country where you are applying and the Claim Analyzer aligns your account with that jurisdiction's legal framework — setting out the grounds available, the evidence to gather, the country of origin information to prioritise, and a first-person personal statement in Microsoft Word. Appeal, affidavit and country-information drafting are also available.
This guide is general information about how asylum procedures usually work. It is not legal advice and does not replace advice from a qualified legal representative in the country where you are applying.