CHAPTER V: ADMINISTRATIVE MEASURES ARTICLE 25: ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANCE 1. When the exercise of a right by a stateless person would normally require the assistance of authorities of a foreign country to whom he cannot have recourse, the Contracting State in whose territory he is residing shall arrange that such assistance be afforded to him by their own authorities. 2. The authority or authorities mentioned in paragraph I shall deliver or cause to be delivered under their supervision to stateless persons such documents or certifications as would normally be delivered to aliens by or through their national authorities. 3. Documents or certifications so delivered shall stand in the stead of the official instruments delivered to aliens by or through their national authorities and shall be given credence in the absence of proof to the contrary. 4. Subject to such exceptional treatment as may be granted to indigent persons, fees may be charged for the services mentioned herein, but such fees shall be moderate and commensurate with those charged to nationals for similar services. 5. The provisions of this article shall be without prejudice to articles 27 and 28. I. Background & Commentary Article 25 of the 1954 Convention is nearly identical in wording to Article 25 of the 1951 Refugee Convention. Article 25 requires a Contracting State to provide assistance to stateless persons for services which nationals “ordinarily receive from their judicial, administrative, or consular authorities, such as delivery of documents relating to their family position (birth, marriage, adoption, death, or divorce certificate) or their special position (school or professional certificates) certifications (copies or translations of documents, regularity of documents or their conformity with the law of the country), identity.”442 This assistance is critical for stateless persons because they cannot expect to receive such assistance from the authorities of their former nationality or residence.443 It is noteworthy that the words “habitual residence” is not used in the text of Article 25, indicating that permanent residence is not a requirement for assistance.444 The right to administrative assistance is owed to a stateless person due to being subjected to the country’s jurisdiction or physical presence, it is “defined in absolute terms because the drafters deemed them fundamental to the most basic definition of protection, or because a contingent standard of respect is unviable given their [stateless]-specific nature.”445 Robinson Commentary to the 1954 Convention, supra note 11 at 47. Ibid. 444 Ibid., at 48. 445 James C. Hathaway, The Law of Refugee Status, 2ed (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014) at 47, referring to the same provision in the 1951 Refugee Convention. 442 443 93 93