# Canonical recap data for Geneva Convention on Refugees Signed (1951)
# Source: https://recap.at/1951/refugee-convention
# Format: YAML 1.2 (UTF-8). Generated at request time.
slug: refugee-convention
canonicalUrl: "https://recap.at/1951/refugee-convention"
title: Geneva Convention on Refugees Signed
aliases:
- 1951 Refugee Convention
- UN Refugee Convention
- Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees
- Refugee Treaty of 1951
subtitle: The United Nations Convention on the Status of Refugees established the first international legal framework protecting displaced persons and defined refugee status that remains foundational to humanitarian law.
recapType: global_event
eventStatus: concluded
startDate: 1951-01-01
datePrecision: year
year: 1951
decade: 1950
country:
name: Switzerland
slug: switzerland
summaryShort: "The Geneva Conventions are a series of four international treaties (1949) and their three additional protocols that form the core of international humanitarian law. They establish legal standards for humanitarian treatment of non-combatants in war and protect people who are not or are no longer actively taking part in "
summaryLong: The Geneva Conventions are a series of four international treaties (1949) and their three additional protocols that form the core of international humanitarian law. They establish legal standards for humanitarian treatment of non-combatants in war and protect people who are not or are no longer actively taking part in hostilities. This category includes not only civilians and civilian populations but also former combatants, such as prisoners of war and fighters rendered hors de combat due to injury, illness, shipwreck or those who have surrendered. The four 1949 Geneva Conventions, adopted in response to the inhumanities of World War II, updated and added to previous Geneva Conventions. The 1949 Geneva Conventions address the treatment of sick and wounded soldiers in the field, wounded, sick and shipwrecked soldiers at sea, prisoners of war, and civilians in time of war. In 1977, these rules were updated by two Additional Protocols, the first concerning international armed conflicts and the second, non-international armed conflicts.
lede: On July 28, 1951, the United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees was signed in Geneva, creating the first international legal framework for protecting people fleeing persecution. The treaty established who qualifies as a refugee and what rights they're entitled to—work, education, legal protection—regardless of their nationality. It became the foundation for how the world handles displaced people, and remains binding law for 196 countries today.
heroImageUrl: "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d3/Original_Geneva_Conventions.jpg/1280px-Original_Geneva_Conventions.jpg"
heroImageCredit: Wikipedia · "Geneva Conventions"
importance: 79
sourceConfidence: 75
keyFacts:
- label: Signatory countries (current)
  value: "196"
- label: Date signed
  value: July 28, 1951
- label: Location
  value: Geneva, Switzerland
- label: Adopting body
  value: United Nations General Assembly
- label: Original signatory countries
  value: "12"
- label: Date entered into force
  value: April 22, 1954
- label: Companion Protocol
  value: 1967 Protocol (removed geographic and temporal limits)
timeline:
- date: 1948-01-01
  title: International Refugee Organization established
  description: The UN creates a temporary body to manage displaced persons following World War II, handling roughly 1 million refugees.
- date: 1949-12-02
  title: UN Ad Hoc Committee drafting begins
  description: The United Nations convenes a committee to draft a permanent legal convention on refugee status, replacing the temporary IRO framework.
- date: 1951-07-02
  title: Final draft approved by UN General Assembly
  description: After 18 months of negotiation, the General Assembly approves the draft Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.
- date: 1951-07-28
  title: Convention signed in Geneva
  description: Twelve countries sign the Refugee Convention at the United Nations European Office. The treaty establishes legal definition of refugee status and minimum protections.
- date: 1954-04-22
  title: Convention enters into force
  description: After ratification by six signatory states, the Convention becomes binding international law.
- date: 1967-01-31
  title: Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees signed
  description: A companion protocol removes the 1951 Convention's geographic limitation (Europe) and temporal limitation (pre-1951 events), making it truly global.
- date: 1980-12-01
  title: Protocol enters into force
  description: The 1967 Protocol becomes binding, establishing the current framework used worldwide for refugee determination.
sources:
- url: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Conventions"
  title: Geneva Conventions
  provider: Wikipedia
related: []
impactStatement: This treaty wrote the first globally binding definition of refugee status into law and set minimum standards for how signatory states must treat them. Before 1951, displaced people had no international legal standing. The convention created it—establishing that fleeing persecution is grounds for asylum, not a legal gray zone.
categories:
- award
taxonomy:
domain: political
eventTypes:
- treaty_signing
- diplomatic_summit
canonicalClasses:
- governance
- creation
impactRadius: global
velocity: gradual
predictability: scheduled
intentionality: planned
domainCoupling: multi_domain
lifecycleClass: birth
metaDescription: The 1951 UN Refugee Convention established the first international legal framework for protecting displaced people fleeing persecution.
wikidataQid: Q133536
archiveSnapshots:
- url: "https://web.archive.org/web/20260605051731/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Conventions"
  capturedAt: 2026-06-05
  label: Geneva Conventions
  originalUrl: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geneva_Conventions"
