International protection

The Law on the Right to Asylum and Subsidiary Protection forms the asylum, recognized in Article 13.4 of the Spanish Constitution, such as the protection granted by Spain to non-EU nationals or stateless persons who are recognised as refugees in accordance with this Law, the 1951 Geneva Convention or the 1967 New York Protocol.

On the one hand, refugee status is recognized to any person who, due to well-founded fears of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, political opinions or membership of a particular social group, is outside his country of origin and is unable or, owing to such fears, unwilling to avail himself of the protection of that country; or a stateless person who, without nationality and being outside the country where he or she previously had his or her habitual residence, is unable or, for any of the reasons set out above, does not wish to return.

On the other hand, the right to subsidiary protection is that granted to third-country nationals and stateless persons who, even if without qualifying for asylum or refugee status, prove well-founded reasons proving which, from return to their country of origin in the case of nationals or, in the case of stateless persons, to their former country of habitual residence, would face a real risk of suffering any of the expected serious harm and that they are unable or, because of that risk, unwilling to avail themselves of the protection of the country concerned.

The protection granted by international protection (a term that encompasses both the right to asylum and subsidiary protection and residence for humanitarian reasons for Venezuelan citizens) consists of the non-refoulement or expulsion of persons who have been recognized, as well as in the adoption of the measures contemplated in Spanish legislation, that of the European Union and in the international conventions ratified by Spain, as long as the circumstances under which they are granted the right of asylum or subsidiary protection remain.

The acts on which the well-founded fears to be subject to persecution on grounds of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, membership of a particular social group, gender or sexual orientation, shall:

• Being sufficiently serious by its nature or repeated character such as to constitute a serious violation of fundamental rights covered by the second paragraph of Article 15 of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms; or
• To be a sufficiently severe accumulation of several measures, including human rights violations, such as to affect a person in a manner similar to that mentioned in the previous paragraph.

Acts of persecution may take, inter alia, the following forms:

• Acts of physical or mental violence, including acts of sexual violence.
• Legislative, administrative, police or judicial measures which are discriminatory in themselves or which are applied in a discriminatory manner.
• Prosecutions or penalties that are disproportionate or discriminatory.
• Refusal of judicial protection resulting in disproportionate or discriminatory penalties.
• Prosecutions or penalties for refusal to perform military service in a conflict in which the performance of such service would entail crimes or acts covered by the exclusion clauses established in the second paragraph of Article 8 of Law 12/2009, of 30 October.
• Acts of a sexual nature affecting adults or children.

In assessing the reasons for persecution, the following elements shall be taken into account:

• The concept of race (color, origin or membership of a particular ethnic group).
• The concept of religion (theistic, non-theistic and atheistic beliefs, participation or abstention in cults, individually or in community; acts or expressions involving an opinion of a religious nature, or forms of personal or community conduct based on or mandated by any religious belief).
• The concept of nationality (membership of a group determined by its cultural, ethnic or linguistic identity, its common geographical or political origins or its relationship with the population of another State).
• The concept of political opinions (profession of opinions, ideas or beliefs on a matter related to potential actors of persecution and their policies or methods, whether or not the applicant has acted in accordance with such opinions, ideas or beliefs).

A group shall be deemed to constitute a particular social group if, in particular:

• Individuals in such a group share an innate characteristic or common background that cannot be changed, or share a characteristic or belief that is so fundamental to their identity or conscience that they cannot be required to renounce it; and,
• That group has a distinct identity in the country concerned because it is perceived as different by the surrounding society or by the pursuing agent(s).

Account for the application for international protection in Spain

This document allows any person or family non-EU (i.e. national of a non-EU country) detail the facts or circumstances for which you wish to apply asylum or international protection in Spain. In this way, the applicant can try to justify the reasons why you want the Spanish state to protect you and that he prevent them from returning to their country of origin given the existence of a discriminatory situation, risk of execution or circumstances putting his physical integrity at risk.

What is an application for international protection?

Asylum, subsidiary protection and residence for humanitarian reasons for Venezuelan citizens are a way to allow all those who have a well-founded fear or fear of being persecuted in their country of origin for any discriminatory reason (race, ethnic origin, nationality, religion, ideology or political opinions and membership of a particular social group) to flee that situation, taking refuge in Spain. It must be a fear or well-founded fear, either by the particular situation where the applicant is (e.g. a person threatened by his or her work as a journalist) or by his or her own general situation chaos or repression in a country (e.g. the existence of a repressive and corrupt dictatorship in a given country).

Who can apply for asylum or international protection

Asylum or international protection may be applied for by all persons who have well-founded fears of persecution on grounds of race, religion, nationality, political opinion, membership of a particular social group, gender or sexual orientation. These must be situations graves or repeated character in time.

Specifically, situations of persecution are understood as the following:

• Acts of physical or mental violence, including acts of sexual violence;
• Laws, administrative decisions, police or judicial proceedings that are discriminatory per se or applied in a discriminatory manner;
• Processing or penalties that are disproportionate o discriminatory (e.g. penalties for publishing articles critical of the government);
• Refusal of judicial protection resulting in disproportionate or discriminatory penalties;
• Prosecutions or penalties for refusal to perform military service in a conflict in which the performance of such a service would entail a criminal offence; and,
• Acts of a sexual nature affecting both adults and children.

These acts of persecution must relate to some of the following: grounds of discrimination:

• The concept of race include, in particular, colour, origin or membership of a particular ethnic group.
• The concept of religion include, in particular, the profession of theistic, non-theistic and atheistic beliefs, participation in, or abstention from, formal worship in private or in public, either individually or in community, as well as other acts or expressions involving an opinion of a religious nature, or forms of personal or communal conduct based on or mandated by any religious belief.
• The concept of nationality it shall not be limited to possessing citizenship or not, but shall include, in particular, membership of a group determined by its cultural, ethnic or linguistic identity, its common geographical or political origins or its relationship with the population of another State.
• The concept of political opinions include, in particular, the profession of opinions, ideas or beliefs on a matter related to the potential actors of persecution and their policies or methods, whether or not the applicant acted in accordance with those opinions, ideas or beliefs.
• The existence of a situation of discrimination, either on the basis of gender (e.g. being a woman) or sexual orientation (e.g. because he is homosexual).

The applicant for asylum in Spain must prove the existence of any of the situations indicated above by means of the evidence he possesses (press clippings, judgments or judicial decisions unfairly handed down against him, photographs, videos proving repression of some kind, medical parts in which injuries suffered are collected, etc.).

What is the procedure for applying for asylum or international protection?

The persecuted person or family may apply for asylum in the following places:

• Border posts of entry into Spanish territory.
• Offices of Foreigners authorized for this purpose.
• Police stations of the National Police authorized for this purpose (routine if requested once you have entered Spain).

If the application is made from Spain, it must be submitted, personally, within the first month upon arrival in Spain. It is also possible to submit the application after the deadline if it is shown that they have arisen new circumstances which prevent the person concerned from returning to his or her country (e.g. by receiving new threats in the event of returning to his or her country) or to the inability to get an appointment to submit the application on time.

The application shall include the making of a personal interview in which the applicant must provide this written account and his/her passport, as well as the evidence at his/her disposal. During this interview, the applicant shall report the facts for which you are seeking asylum and answer questions in relation to those facts that may be raised with you. The applicant will also be informed in this interview of your rights as an asylum seeker, and you will be helped to complete those aspects of your application that are necessary.

While the application is pending, the applicant will be able to stay in Spain legally, as well as work regularly once they have passed six months from the date on which the interview took place (time at which the work permit is activated).

In the case of applying for international protection from Spanish territory, you will not be able to leave the country until the application is processed.

Content of the account of the facts

This letter must include the following minimum content in order to ensure the effectiveness of the story:

• Name and identification details of the applicant.
• Family members seeking asylum, if applicable.
• Date of entry in Spain, if applicable.
• Explanation of the facts the reasons for the request.
• Signature of declaration by the applicant.

Together with this information, they can be provided as Annexes all kinds of tests that are considered appropriate in order to be able to prove the risk situation for which it is decided to apply for international protection in Spain (e.g. newspaper clippings where the facts for which asylum is requested are collected, medical parts of aggressions, links to videos of aggressions, etc.).

You can make your presentation on the day of the appointment for the application for asylum before the Police or at the corresponding border post, together with the original passport and copy of this, a photograph of the applicant's identity card and, where applicable, of each member of his or her family unit, and any supporting documents to be provided, including marriage and birth certificates. During this appointment, the applicant will have to solve the possible doubts that are raised by the Police and explain what is collected in this story.

New European Pact on Migration and Asylum

En 2024 el Parlamento Europeo y el Consejo aprobaron el New European Pact on Migration and Asylum, un paquete legislativo que busca unificar y armonizar la gestión migratoria y de asilo en la Unión Europea, combinando control fronterizo, procedimientos más rápidos y un mecanismo de solidaridad obligatoria entre Estados miembros. Su aplicación plena está prevista para junio de 2026, aunque España ya ha presentado su Plan Nacional de Implementación y ha manifestado su intención de adelantar su puesta en marcha, iniciando trabajos para adaptar su sistema a los nuevos requisitos marcados por el plan común de la Comisión Europea.

La nueva normativa plantea un refuerzo de los controles en las fronteras exteriores, con registros biométricos y sanitarios más sistemáticos, y la implantación de procedimientos comunes para la tramitación de solicitudes y la ejecución de retornos. El enfoque incluye también un componente exterior, reforzando acuerdos con terceros países para prevenir flujos irregulares y combatir las redes de trata, así como programas de reasentamiento y admisión humanitaria. Además, España deberá ajustar su marco legal, su sistema de gestión fronteriza y de recepción, e incluso prever planes de contingencia para situaciones de llegadas masivas, siguiendo la estructura marcada en el plan europeo.

Aunque el Pacto se presenta como un avance hacia una respuesta más solidaria y eficiente, nos preocupa que algunas de sus medidas (como la aceleración de procedimientos y el refuerzo de controles en frontera) puedan reducir las garantías para acceder de forma efectiva a la protección internacional. Vemos con cautela el impulso a mecanismos de externalización de retornos, ya que consideramos imprescindible que cualquier decisión en este sentido cuente con supervisión judicial y se lleve a cabo en condiciones plenamente garantistas. El verdadero reto estará en encontrar un equilibrio real entre la eficacia en la gestión migratoria y el respeto de los derechos fundamentales que deben sustentar cualquier sistema europeo de asilo.