REFUGEES FROM GENERATION TO GENERATION UNHCR, APRIL 2023 Annex 2: Terminology The most important terms used in this report are defined below. For other terms not included here, see the UNHCR Master Glossary of Terms available at https://www.unhcr.org/glossary/. Asylum-seeker “A general term for any person who is seeking international protection. In some countries, it is used as a legal term referring to a person who has applied for refugee status or a complementary international protection status and has not yet received a final decision on their claim. It can also refer to a person who has not yet submitted an application but may intend to do so, or may be in need of international protection. Not every asylum-seeker will ultimately be recognized as a refugee, but every refugee is initially an asylum seeker. However, an asylum-seeker may not be sent back to their country of origin until their asylum claim has been examined in a fair procedure, and is entitled to certain minimum stand ards of treatment pending determination of their status.”102 Cessation of refugee status “An act by which an individual is formally determined to no longer be a refugee. Under Article 1C of the 1951 Convention, refugee status may cease either through the actions of the refugee, such as by reestablishment in his or her country of origin, or through fundamental changes in the objective circumstances in the country of origin upon which refugee status was based. Cessation operates to withdraw refugee status, and brings to an end related rights and benefits. It may be determined on an individual or group basis, and is subject to specific legal procedures and safeguards.” 103 “Cessation clauses” are legal provisions setting out the conditions under which refugee status comes to an end because it is no longer needed or justified. Cessation clauses are found in Article 1(C) of the 1951 Convention, and in Article 1(4) of the 1969 OAU Convention. See also the heading on the situation of former refugees in Annex 3. Citizenship/Nationality In international law, nationality and citizenship are now used as synonyms, to describe a particular legal relationship between the state and the individual; the terms can be used interchangeably in English, though “nationality” is more commonly used in international treaties and “citizenship” in national laws. In civil law countries in Africa, the term “nationality” (nationalité) is used at both national and international level. Neither term has any connotation of ethnic or racial content, but is simply the status that gives a person certain rights and obligations in relation to a particular state. This study uses citizenship and nationality according to the terms used in the national context, and (in general) nationality at the international level. Civil registration “Civil registration is defined as the continuous, permanent, compulsory and universal recording of the occurrence and characteristics of vital events pertaining to the population, as provided through decree 102 103 Source: https://www.unhcr.org/glossary/. Source: https://www.unhcr.org/glossary/. See also UNHCR Standing Committee, Note on the Cessation Clauses, EC/47/SC/CRP.30, 30 May 1997, https://www.unhcr.org/excom/standcom/3ae68cf610/note -cessationclauses.html ; and UNHCR, Guidelines on International Protection: Cessation of Refugee Status under Article 1C(5) and (6) of the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees (the “Ceased Circumstances” Clauses), 10 February 2003, https://www.unhcr.org/3e637a202.pdf 42