INTERNATIONAL PROTECTION BEYOND THE REFUGEE CONVENTION – ANALYSIS OF TEMPORARY AND SUBSIDIARY PROTECTION IN THE EU AND THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA

Jovana Tosic

doi:10.5937/ptp2504202T

Authors

Jovana Tosic Legal Officer, Center for Research and Social Development “IDEAS”, Belgrade, Serbia https://orcid.org/0009-0005-7150-3523

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5937/ptp2504202T

Keywords:

international protection, temporary protection, subsidiary protection, refugee law, human rights law

Abstract

This article explores the discretionary application of temporary and subsidiary protection mechanisms in the European Union and the Republic of Serbia, set against the backdrop of intensifying global migratory flows. The analysis uncovers a pronounced selectivity in the approach to international protection, which is primarily shaped by political and security considerations. This is most evident in the divergent treatment: the automatic and selective granting of temporary protection is sharply contrasted with the individualized assessment required under regular asylum procedures, despite both situations involving mass influxes of refugees. Through a comparative examination of the EU and Serbian legal frameworks, the paper evaluates the key legal challenges and the scope of political discretion in safeguarding refugee rights. This inherent inconsistency calls into question the coherence of international refugee and human rights law, underscoring the urgent need for harmonized regional responses. By identifying legal inconsistencies, the ultimate goal of this paper is to formulate possible recommendations for future improvements and greater legal consistency in protection mechanisms.

References

Arboleda, E. (1991). Refugee Definition in Africa and Latin America: The Lessons of Pragmatism. International Journal of Refugee Law, 3(1), pp. 185–207

Audebert, C., & Dorai, M.K. (eds.) (2010). Migration in a Globalised World, New Research Issues and Prospects. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press

Chetail, V. (2016). The Common European Asylum System: Bric-ŕ-brac or System? In: Chetail, V., De Bruycker, P., & Maiani, F. (eds.), Reforming the Common European Asylum System: The New European Refugee Law (pp. 3–38). Leiden: Brill

Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 1465 UNTS 85, 10.12.1984

Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, 189 UNTS 137, 28.07.1951

Council Directive 2001/55/EC of 20 July 2001 on minimum standards for giving temporary protection in the event of a mass influx of displaced persons and on measures promoting a balance of efforts between Member States in receiving such persons, OJ L 212, 07.08.2001

Council Directive 2004/83/EC of 29 April 2004 on minimum standards for the qualification and status of third country nationals or stateless persons as refugees or as persons otherwise in need of international protection and the content of the protection granted (the Qualification Directive), OJ L 304, 30.09.2004

Directive 2011/95/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011 on standards for the qualification of third-country nationals or stateless persons as beneficiaries of international protection, for a uniform status for refugees or for persons eligible for subsidiary protection, and for the content of the protection granted (recast) (the Qualification Directive), OJ L 337, 20.12.2011

European Commission, Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on a New Pact on Migration and Asylum. COM/2020/609 final, 23.09.2020

European Commission, Communication Providing Operational Guidelines for External Border Management to Facilitate Border Crossings at the EU-Ukraine Borders. OJ C 104I, 04.03.2022

European Convention on Human Rights, Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms. CETS No. 5, 04.10.1950

Gluns, D., & Wessels, J. (2017). Waste of Paper or Useful Tool? The Potential of the Temporary Protection Directive in the Current “Refugee Crisis”. Refugee Survey Quarterly, 36(3), pp. 57–83

Hathaway, J.,C. (2021). The Rights of Refugees under International Law. 2nd edn. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

Ineli-Ciger, M. (2022). Immediate Protection in the New Pact on Migration and Asylum: A Viable Substitute for Temporary Protection?. In: Thym, D., & Odysseus Academic Network (eds.), Reforming the Common European Asylum System: Opportunities, Pitfalls, and Downsides of the Commission Proposals for a New Pact on Migration and Asylum (pp. 149–166). Baden-Baden: Nomos

International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 999 UNTS 171, 16.12.1966

Kovačević, N., & Šemić, A. (2025). Poštovanje, zaštita i ostvarivanje ljudskih prava osoba u potrebi za međunarodnom zaštitom: Godišnji izveštaj za 2024. godinu [Respect, Protection, and Realization of Human Rights of Persons in Need of International Protection in the Republic of Serbia: Annual Report for 2024]. Beograd: Centar za istraživanje i razvoj društva IDEAS

Lambert, H. (2006). The EU Asylum Qualification Directive, its Impact on the Jurisprudence of the United Kingdom and International Law. International and Comparative Law Quarterly, 55(1), pp. 1–24

McAdam, J. (2021). Complementary Protection. In: Costello, C., Foster, M., & McAdam, J. (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of International Refugee Law (pp. 693–708). Oxford: Oxford University Press

Odluka o produženju privremene zaštite za raseljena lica iz Ukrajine [Decision on the Extension of Temporary Protection for Displaced Persons from Ukraine]. Službeni glasnik RS, br. 20/23

Odluka o pružanju privremene zaštite raseljenim licima koja dolaze iz Ukrajine [Decision on Granting Temporary Protection to Displaced Persons Arriving from Ukraine]. Službeni glasnik RS, br. 36/22, 21/23 i 21/24

Organisation of African Unity, Convention Governing the Specific Aspects of Refugee Problems in Africa, 10.09.1969

Organization of American States, Cartagena Declaration on Refugees, Adopted by the Colloquium on the International Protection of Refugees in Central America, Mexico and Panama, Conclusion III, 22.11.1984

Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, 606 UNTS 267, 31.01.1967

Roxström, E., & Gibney, M. (2003). The Legal and Ethical Obligations of UNHCR: The Case of Temporary Protection in Western Europe. In: Steiner, N., Gibney, M., & Loescher, G. (eds.), Problems of Protection: The UNHCR, Refugees and Human Rights (pp. 167–190). London: Routledge

Simeon, J.,C. (ed.) (2022). Serious International Crimes, Human Rights, and Forced Migration. London: Routledge

Tiedemann, P. (2012). Subsidiary Protection and the Function of Article 15(c) of the Qualification Directive. Refugee Survey Quarterly, 31(1), pp. 123–138

Treaty establishing the European Community, as amended by the Treaty of Amsterdam, OJ C 340, 10.11.1997

Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, OJ C 326/47, 26.10.2012

Tsourdi, E. (L.) (2021). Regional Refugee Regimes: Europe. In: Costello, C., Foster, M., & McAdam, J. (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of International Refugee Law (pp. 887–905). Oxford: Oxford University Press

UNHCR Srbija, Izveštaj o izbeglicama iz Ukrajine [The Report on Ukrainian Refugees]. Downloaded 2025, May 03 from https://www.unhcr.org/rs/sta-radimo/operativni-izvestaji/izbeglice-iz-ukrajine

UNHCR, Conclusion No. 103 (LVI) on Complementary Forms of Protection, A/AC.96/1021, 07.10.2005

UNHCR, Guidelines on International Protection No. 5: Application of the Exclusion Clauses: Article 1F of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (HCR/GIP/03/05), 04.09.2003

UNHCR, Statement of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to the International Meeting on Humanitarian Aid for Victims of the Conflict in the Former Yugoslavia. Geneva, 29.07.1992

UNHCR, The State of The World’s Refugees 2006, Human Displacement in the New Millennium. Geneva, 20.04.2006

United Nations, International Law Commission, Draft conclusions on identification and legal consequences of peremptory norms of general international law (jus cogens). A/77/10, 2022

Ustav Republike Srbije [Constitution of Republic of Serbia]. Službeni glasnik RS, br. 98/06 i 115/21

Velluti, S. (2022). Reforming the Common European Asylum System: Legislative Developments and Judicial Activism of the European Courts. London: Springer

Zakon o azilu i privremenoj zaštiti [Law on Asylum and Temporary Protection]. Službeni glasnik RS, br. 24/18

Zakon o izbeglicama [Law on Refugees]. Službeni glasnik RS, br. 18/92

Zakon o zaštiti podataka o ličnosti [Law on Personal Data Protection]. Službeni glasnik RS, br. 87/18