On the occasion of World Refugee Day, marked on 20 June, the Belgrade Centre for Human Rights recalls the importance of providing support to refugees who have been forced to flee their homes due to persecution, various forms of violence, armed conflict and other human rights violations. At a time when the world is facing multiple crises, global instability and a deepening erosion of international protection, solidarity with refugees, asylum seekers and internally displaced persons must be translated into concrete protection policies, access to rights and durable solutions.
According to the latest available UNHCR data, in 2026, 117.8 million people worldwide were forcibly displaced, while millions continue to return to devastated communities, living in uncertainty and without the possibility of a dignified life. In Serbia, during 2026, the trend of a very low number of persons staying in reception and asylum centres managed by the Commissariat for Refugees and Migration continued, while at the same time a large number of people remain outside the official system, exposed to risks of labour exploitation, smuggling networks and trafficking in human beings. Of particular concern is the existence of a parallel system in which a large number of foreign workers and migrants remain invisible to institutions, without access to information about their rights, in an irregular residence status, engaged in undeclared work and without effective access to protection, often exposed to abuses related to employment contracts and other labour rights.
According to available UNHCR data for Serbia from April 2026, since the beginning of the year only 1,413 new arrivals have been registered through the centres of the Commissariat for Refugees and Migration of the Republic of Serbia. In the same period, 129 persons expressed an intention to seek asylum in Serbia, while 59 formally lodged an asylum application and entered the procedure. During 2026, only four persons were granted asylum. Since the establishment of the asylum system in 2008 until April 2026, only 264 persons have been granted asylum or subsidiary protection in the Republic of Serbia.
The Republic of Serbia has undertaken to ensure a functional and sustainable system of free legal aid for asylum seekers, to improve the quality and efficiency of decision-making at all stages of the asylum procedure, and to ensure that every application is examined individually, impartially and without discrimination on any personal ground. Particular attention must be paid to persons in a particularly vulnerable situation, including unaccompanied children, victims of trafficking in human beings, victims of torture, persons with disabilities, women exposed to gender-based violence, LGBTI+ persons and other persons belonging to vulnerable categories within the refugee population.
Asylum seekers and refugees in Serbia still do not have biometric identity cards, which often exposes them to administrative obstacles in exercising economic and social rights, including the right to health care, access to the labour market, opening bank accounts and using other services. It is therefore of crucial importance that Serbia, without delay, ensure the issuance of biometric identification documents for refugees, in order to enable them to fully enjoy the rights recognised by law.
We remind the public that in March 2022 Serbia activated temporary protection for the first time for persons displaced from Ukraine, and that this protection has been extended every year and remains in force to this day. Bearing in mind that armed conflict in Ukraine has been ongoing for more than four years, it is important to emphasise the need to identify durable solutions for persons under temporary protection and to enable their transition to more permanent forms of residence in Serbia, including through the asylum procedure.
Of particular concern is the fact that the implementation of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum began on 12 June 2026, with the stated aim of establishing “firmer and fairer” rules, faster procedures and stronger EU external borders. However, viewed as a whole, the Pact restricts access to asylum, lowers safeguards for fundamental rights and keeps persons in need of protection at the EU’s external borders, with a particular risk of broader use of detention, accelerated border procedures, insufficient vulnerability assessments and inconsistent implementation among Member States. It also carries the risk of shifting responsibility to non-EU countries through policies of “externalisation”, increased returns and readmission.
We also recall that, in May, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD), in its concluding observations, recommended that Serbia refrain from practices of collective expulsion, ensure asylum seekers’ access to the asylum procedure at border crossings and airports, and continue improving material reception conditions, particularly in closed-type facilities, stressing that detention measures should be applied only as a measure of last resort. In addition, Serbia was requested to ensure that all removal procedures are carried out with full respect for the principle of non-refoulement, and to conduct impartial and thorough investigations into all allegations of violations of refugees’ rights by public officials, including racial discrimination, arbitrary deprivation of liberty, torture and inhuman treatment.
The Belgrade Centre for Human Rights once again emphasises that the protection of refugees is not a matter of the goodwill of a society, but an obligation grounded in international law, the Constitution of the Republic of Serbia and the principles of human dignity. Therefore, as in previous years, we will continue to provide legal assistance to asylum seekers and refugees, support their integration and advocate for the improvement of their position in our society.
