Author
The Asylum Regulation, which gives practical application to the previous version of the Asylum Law, makes specific reference to the provision of information to asylum seekers on their rights.[1] It provides that the Spanish administration, in collaboration with UNHCR and other NGOs who work with refugees, will elaborate leaflets for the provision of relevant information to asylum seekers in several languages.
The Ministry of Interior has published a leaflet, available online and handed to all applicants at the moment they express the will to ask for international protection, so that they can contact any organisation that provides support and assistance.[2] The information is available in English, French, Spanish and Arabic.
In addition, the Asylum Regulation specifies that information on the asylum procedure and on applicants’ rights will be given orally by the authority in charge of the registration procedure, and in particular on their right to free legal assistance and interpretation service.[3]
Besides institutional information channels, other organisations design and disseminate information leaflets and brochures regarding the asylum procedure and related rights. The information may be provided in several languages, depending on the entity promoting the material.
On the International Woman Day, on March 2021, UNHCR launched a video to prevent gender-based violence against refugee and asylum seeker women. The video is available in 4 languages (Spanish, English, French and Arabic), and is aimed at preventing and identifying possible situations of gender-based violence, and informing refugee and asylum seekers women on what to do and where to refer in such cases[4]. In addition, in April 2021, UNHCR launched two animated videos to inform persons reaching Spain about international protection. The videos are available in Spanish, English, French and Arabic, and they explain to newcomers what international protection is and how to access the procedure in Spain, both at the borders and in territory.[5]
Through its presence at main entry points and in Madrid, UNHCR provided information to 29,098 individuals who were newly arrived and seeking asylum in 2024. This support was provided through face-to-face counselling, group information sessions, helplines and email correspondence and during UNHCR´s monitoring visits to reception centres and detention centres for sea arrivals. Information was also disseminated through adapted materials such as videos in various languages.
UNHCR also disseminated information through videos and leaflets in various languages (including African languages) as well as its HELP portal on how to access the asylum procedure and the reception system and the rights and obligations of refugees, asylum seekers and stateless people.
Information provision was also reinforced through group sessions, individual counselling and the “Know Your Rights” programme implemented by DLA Piper law firm. Furthermore, a special edition dedicated to Afghan refugees was implemented, engaging five Afghan Refugee-Led Organisations in its design and implementation to ensure the initiative was community-driven and culturally relevant for the 114 Afghan participants.
UNHCR, issued a virtual newsletter for refugees and stateless people to disseminate information and opportunities to the community, enabling to reach out to forcibly displaced populations outside the reception system, reaching 3,000 people.[6]
In October 2024, the Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration launched a phone service (number +34 913990009) to inform about international and temporary protection. The service is provided by eight persons, and the information is given in eight languages: Spanish, English, French, Ukrainian, Russian, Arabic, Farsi and Bambara.[7]
[1] Article 5(1) Asylum Regulation.
[2] The leaflet is available here.
[3] Article 5(2) Asylum Regulation.
[4] UNHCR/ACNUR, ‘ACNUR presenta un vídeo para ayudar a prevenir la violencia de género en mujeres refugiadas y solicitantes de asilo’, 5 March 2021, available here.
[5] UNHCR/ACNUR, ACNUR lanza dos vídeos animados sobre protección internacional y asilo en España, 19 April 2021, available here.
[6] Information provided by UNHCR in March 2025.
[7] Ministerio de Inclusión, Seguridad Social y Migraciones, ‘El Ministerio de Migraciones pone en funcionamiento una línea de atención telefónica sobre protección internacional y temporal’, 18 October 2024, available here.