11.3.3 Safe Third Country

The CJEU in C-647/16 Adil Hassan v Prefet du Pas-de-Calais held that a transfer pursuant to the Dublin regulation cannot take place before the proposed destination country has accepted the request to take the person back.

This may seem obvious, and has not really been an issue in the UK. The case concerned an attempt by France to return the individual to Germany before Germany had agreed.

11.6.3 Cessation

Following the active review announced by the Secretary of State in March 2017, there appears to have been an increase in the number of Home Office decisions ceasing refugee status. Cessation was previously rare, and is still uncommon, since the Secretary of State has to show, according to Article 11(2) of the Qualification Directive, that the change of circumstances must be ‘of such a significant and non-temporary nature that the refugee’s fear of persecution can no longer be regarded as well founded’. Following Abdulla¸ this means when the factors which formed the basis of the refugee’s fear of persecution can be regarded as ‘permanently eradicated’.

In SSHD  v MA (Somalia) [2018] EWCA Civ 994 the Court of Appeal held that human rights and humanitarian considerations did not affect whether refugee status could be ceased. That was based solely cessation of the circumstances which gave rise to the refugee claim, and should be a ‘mirror’ of the refugee claim (para 2). Human rights and humanitarian factors should be considered separately.