UNHCR’s Mandate for Refugee Status Determination (RSD) Refugee Status Determination is the legal or administrative process by which governments or UNHCR determine whether a person seeking international protection is considered a refugee under international, regional or national law. RSD is a vital process in helping refugees realize their rights under international law. This process can be done on an individual or group basis. Although States have the primary responsibility for determining refugee status, UNHCR may conduct RSD in countries and territories that are not party to the 1951 Convention, or which have not yet established the legal and institutional framework to support an RSD process. RSD pursuant to UNHCR’s mandate is a core protection function. The Procedural Standards for RSD under UNHCR’s Mandate sets out the minimum procedural standards for when RSD is conducted by UNHCR under its mandate. It establishes core principles and standards that must be observed to ensure that all asylum-seekers applying for refugee status determination under UNHCR’s mandate benefit from accurate, timely and consistent decision-making and to support capacitydevelopment of UNHCR RSD staff and other stakeholders. In 2003, UNHCR issued the Procedural Standards for Refugee Status Determination under UNHCR’s Mandate (“2003 RSD Procedural Standards”) to establish minimum procedural standards and harmonize its RSD procedures across UNHCR operations. However, the global rise in refugee numbers, including in mandate RSD operations, and the need to enhance the capacity of UNHCR to respond to the increased number of individual applications, have since resulted in the development of UNHCR’s strategic engagement with RSD in 2015. The revised RSD Procedural Standards seek to address these considerations, while they incorporate updates to UNHCR policies, guidance and practices since the release of the 2003 RSD Procedural Standards. The considerations that follow have been developed to provide guidance on UNHCR procedures to determine eligibility for mandate refugee status determination on an individual basis, through the examination of individual claims. 14 Procedural Standards for RSD under UNHCR’s Mandate