The Problem of Exclusion from Refugee Status on the Grounds of Being Guilty of Terrorist Acts in the CJEU Case-law

Abstract:

The current article provides a critical analysis of the rulings of the European Court of Justice with regard to the exclusion of third-country nationals from the possibility of applying for refugee status on the grounds of serious reasons for considering that a person is being guilty of terrorist acts. The CJEU examined the grounds for exclusion in Cases B. and D. (C-57/09), H.T. (C-373/13) and also in the judgment of 21 January 2017 passed in the Lounani case (C-573/14) and conducted a complex analysis of Article 12 of the Qualification Directive. The instrument of exclusion is, as such, applied in exceptional cases under strictly defined legal circumstances, depriving at the same time a third-country national of the guarantees under Article 18 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights.

The CJEU has proposed an interesting legislative acquis, which is worth putting under discussion. On the one hand, the Court has highlighted the necessity to individually examine each case and, on the other, the possibility of excluding a person posing a threat to the receiving country. The balance between these two values—the safety of the receiving community and the protection of fundamental rights of third-country nationals seems to be especially significant in the current situation, when the EU faces an increased influx of persons seeking international protection due to the migration crisis.

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