Travelling abroad

To travel abroad, recognised refugees have to use the ‘refugee travel document’, also called the ‘blue passport’. This is because they cannot apply for a passport with the embassy of their country of origin; if they did, they would risk losing their refugee status. The blue passport is also obligatory for refugees travelling to a country of the European Union. Each individual relative who has been recognised as a refugee is required to have his/her own blue passport.
Recognised refugees are under the obligation to always inquire about visa requirements with the embassies or consulates of the countries they want to travel to, even if these are European Union countries.
Normally, recognised refugees are not allowed to return to their country of origin, as they were recognised because of their fear of persecution in that country. Therefore, if they do travel to their country of origin, they can lose their refugee status. In some exceptional cases, the foreigners are allowed to travel to their country of origin for a short period of time (maximum one month). In order to do so, they need to ask permission from the CGRS, which, if it agrees, will determine the conditions of their stay.