Chapter 3
Figure 13 | First permits granted by OECD countries to Afghans, Eritreans, Iraqis, Somalis,
and Syrians by permit type | between 2010 and 2017
130,000
120,000
110,000
100,00
90,000
80,000
70,000
60,000
50,000
40,000
30,000
20,000
10,000
0
‘10
‘11
‘12
Family
‘13
Labour
A total of 82 UNHCR operations referred refugees
to resettlement states in 2018. Turkey (16,000
submissions) and Lebanon (8,400) were the two
largest resettlement operations and accounted for
about one third of all submissions worldwide
[Table 2]. Syrians constituted the largest refugee
Table 2 | Resettlement submissions
by UNHCR operation | 2018
Resettlement
submissions
Turkey
16,042
Lebanon
8,393
United Rep. of Tanzania
6,493
Jordan
6,387
Uganda
5,478
Other
38,544
Total
32
‘15
‘16
‘17
Study
Of the 81,300 submissions made in 2018, 68 per cent
were for survivors of violence and torture, those with
legal and physical protection needs, and particularly
vulnerable women and girls. Just over half of all
resettlement submissions concerned children.
UNHCR operation
‘14
81,337
population to be submitted for resettlement by
UNHCR in 2018 (28,200 or 35 per cent of all
submissions), followed by those from DRC (21,800
submissions) and Eritrea (4,300).
Based on official government statistics provided to
UNHCR, 92,400 refugees 40 were resettled to 25
countries during 2018. Canada admitted the largest
number of resettled refugees (28,100). The United
States of America was second with 22,900. Other
countries that admitted large numbers of resettled
refugees during the year were Australia (12,700),
the United Kingdom (5,800) and France (5,600).
In addition to refugee resettlement, complementary
pathways for admission of refugees are key to
expanding access to third-country solutions. 41 In
2018, UNHCR and Organization for Economic and
Co-operation and Development (OECD) published a
study that examined the use of complementary
40 This figure includes refugees admitted with or without UNHCR’s
assistance.
41 The general framework of complementary pathways in the context
of solutions for refugees is outlined in UNHCR’s “Complementary
pathways for admission to third countries: Key considerations”
paper. See: www.unhcr.org/complementary-pathways.html
unhcr > Global trends 2018