Refugee status is withdrawn (“revoked”) where the person:[1]
- Has withheld information or documents, or presented false information or documents of significance for the asylum proceedings;
- Has committed a crime against peace, a war crime or a crime against humanity, as understood by international law;
- Is guilty of acts contrary to the aims and principles of the United Nations, as specified in Preamble and Articles 1 and 2 of the UN Charter,
- Poses a threat to the security of the state in which resides,
- Has been convicted by a final judgment for a particularly serious crime, other than the crime against peace, a war crime or a crime against humanity, and poses a threat to the society of the state in which resides.
The last two premises are in force since 27 March 2025.[2] The amendments were introduced with reference to the judgment of the CJEU in the cases of M v. Ministerstvo vnitra and X and X v. Commissaire général aux réfugiés et aux apatrides.[3] However, there are doubts as to whether the amendments fully reflect the judgment, as they fail to acknowledge that the mere withdrawal of refugee status does not change the fact that such individuals remain refugees within the meaning of the Geneva Convention as they continue to meet the material conditions set out therein. For this reason, they must be guaranteed the rights referred to in Article 14(6) Directive 2011/95/EC of the directive and in the Geneva Convention.[4]
Subsidiary protection is withdrawn where:[5]
- It has been revealed that a third-country national has withheld information or documents or presented false information or documents of significance for the asylum proceedings;
- There are serious grounds to believe that a third-country national has committed a crime against peace, a war crime or a crime against humanity, as understood by international law;
- There are serious grounds to believe that a third-country national is guilty of acts contrary to the aims and principles of the United Nations, as specified in the Preamble and articles 1 and 2 of the UN Charter;
- There are serious grounds to believe that a third-country national has committed a crime in Poland or an act outside Poland which is a crime according to Polish law;
- There are serious reasons to believe that a third-country national poses a threat to state security or to the safety of society.
Subsidiary protection may also be revoked if, after an applicant has been granted subsidiary protection, it has been revealed that the beneficiary had committed a crime under Polish law punishable by any prison sentence – regardless of its duration – and had left his or her home country for the sole purpose of avoiding punishment.[6]
There is a single procedure in Poland that includes the cessation and withdrawal of international protection. In consequence, the beneficiary may receive a decision on deprivation of international protection, as it is called in Poland, which can be issued on the grounds justifying only a cessation or only a withdrawal or both. The Office for Foreigners shares the data on a general number of ‘deprivations’ and how often the exact legal basis was used in the respective decisions.
In general, international protection is rather ceased than withdrawn. In 2023, 8 persons had their refugee status ceased or withdrawn (2 Russian citizens, 2 Egyptian citizens, 2 Syrian citizens and 2 Uzbek citizens). 67 beneficiaries had their subsidiary protection status ceased or withdrawn (including 63 Russian citizens, 2 Belarusian citizens, 1 Iraqi citizen and 1 Pakistani citizen).[7] In 2024, there were 15 cases in which refugee status was ceased or/and withdrawn (11 Russian citizens, 1 Belarusian citizen, 1 Afghan citizen, 1 Egyptian citizen, 1 Ukrainian citizen). In 2024, 56 persons had their subsidiary protection status ceased or/and withdrawn (including 39 Russian citizens, 10 Ukrainian citizens, 4 Belarusian citizens, 2 Kazakh citizens, 1 Turkish citizen).[8] Statistics for 2023 and 2024 provided by the Office for Foreigners did not allow to differentiate between cases in which the protection status had been ceased, or was withdrawn.
| Grounds for withdrawal of international protection in 2024 | |
| Withdrawal of refugee status | |
| The beneficiary is guilty of acts contrary to the aims and principles of the United Nations, as specified in Preamble and Articles 1 and 2 of the UN Charter | 1 |
| The beneficiary has withheld information or documents, or presented false information or documents of significance for the asylum proceedings | 2 |
| Withdrawal of subsidiary protection | 16 |
Source: Office for Foreigners. Based on the data available, it was not possible to determine which grounds were applied to the withdrawals of subsidiary protection.
The “deprivation” procedure in case of withdrawal is the same as in case of cessation and it is described in the section on Cessation.
[1] Article 21(1) Law on Protection.
[2] Article 1(2) of Act of February 21, 2025 on Amendments to Law on Protection.
[3] CJEU (Grand Chamber), cases C‑391/16, C‑77/17 i C‑78/17, judgement of 14 May 2019.
[4] SIP, ‘Statement of the Association for Legal Intervention regarding the draft Act amending the Act on Granting Protection to Foreigners on the Territory of the Republic of Poland (UD173)’, December 2024 available in Polish here.
[5] Article 22(1) Law on Protection.
[6] Article 22(4) Law on Protection.
[7] Information provided by the Office for Foreigners, 16 February 2024.
[8] Information provided by the Office for Foreigners, 19 February 2025.