I can inform the Deputy that all applicants for international protection must surrender their passports to the IPO at the time of application. Applicants who are refused international protection have their passports returned to them at the time of refusal and persons who are granted subsidiary protection have their passports returned at the time they are granted subsidiary protection.
Passports are not returned to those who have been given a refugee status declaration. It should be noted that persons granted refugee status under section 55 of the International Protection Act 2015 are entitled to a 1951 UN Convention travel document, sometimes referred to as a refugee travel document, which is used in lieu of a passport to travel from and into the State.
Use by a refugee of a passport issued by her or his country of origin can be construed as continuing to avail of the protection of that country, thereby undermining the grounds on which asylum was granted, and potentially provide a basis for revocation of refugee status. It would be neither correct nor logical to create the conditions for revocation of a status and so the passport is retained. As indicated, refugees are entitled to a travel document for travel to or from the State.
In exceptional circumstances, a person to whom a refugee declaration, can have their passport returned on a temporary basis if there is a demonstrable and well-founded reason for such return, for example, if it is required by a State or other organisation for the purpose of identity verification as a condition of service. Persons must undertake to use them only for the purpose declared and to return them when the business for which they were required has been transacted. They are not permitted to travel on them as they are entitled to a refugee travel document for that purpose.
If a person's protection declaration ceases to be in force there is no barrier to such a person from holding a passport.
