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Table 1 IOM definitions used for identifying different migrant types

From: Migrant experiences of sexual and gender based violence: a critical interpretative synthesis

Migrant type

Definition

Source

Documented migrant

A migrant authorized to enter and to stay pursuant to the law of that State or to international agreements to which that State is a party and who is in possession of documents necessary to prove his or her regular status in the country.

International Organisation for Migration (IOM) [9]

Undocumented migrant

A non-national who enters or stays in a country without the appropriate documentation.

Asylum-seeker

An individual who is seeking international protection. In countries with individualized procedures, an asylum seeker is someone whose claim has not yet been finally decided on by the country in which he or she has submitted it.

Refugee (prima facie)

Persons recognized as refugees, by a State or the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, on the basis of objective criteriaa related to the circumstances in their country of origin, which justify a presumption that they meet the criteria of the applicable refugee definition.

Family reunification (dependent) migrant

In the migration context, any person who is granted entry into a State for the purpose of family reunification on the basis of being supported by a “sponsor” with whom the individual has a proven family relationship.b

  1. aThe Prima Facie recognition of refugee status is applied on the basis of apparent circumstances, whereby often, entire groups have been displaced and members can be considered as refugees individually, in absence of evidence to the contrary. The mentioned circumstances that qualifies one as a refugee is defined as per the 1951 Refugee convention (p.171)
  2. bAlthough states differ in the type of family relations recognised for family reunification, they are most commonly spouses or children (below a specified age whereby they are still dependent on their parents) (p.44). However, it is known that some countries also grant entries for dependent (elderly) parents, and / or other relatives under specific considerations as per the country