Social Sustainability

Voluntary Repatriation

Meaning statusEstablishedSource recordDirect document linkedWhy these are different

Definition

Voluntary repatriation is the return of refugees and displaced persons to their country of origin based on a freely expressed wish, in conditions of safety and dignity — one of UNHCR's three durable solutions alongside local integration and resettlement. Voluntariness is the legal core: return under pressure, coercion or deprivation violates the principle of non-refoulement; UNHCR facilitates returns through information, transport and reintegration support when conditions permit, and monitors their voluntariness.

References

www.unhcr.orgBulk import source

Source imported for editorial provenance.

Source organisationSupporting reference

This reference provides supporting context for how “Voluntary Repatriation” is defined and used.

Overview

How it is used

The concept structures UNHCR operations, tripartite agreements between host and origin states, reintegration programming, and debates on climate displacement.

Why it matters

Voluntary repatriation is where refugee protection meets the hope of home — protected by the insistence that only the refugee can decide.