Intervention Centre for Trafficked Women and Girls Organisation (LEFÖ) - Report - Residence permits, international protection and victims of human trafficking

Trafficked persons’ access to long-term or permanent residence is an integral part of their right to effective remedies. Securing a long-term residence for trafficked persons is one way to guarantee their dignity and foster their access to justice. A durable solution in terms of residence provides trafficked person with a foundation for safety and stability, and hope for a future perspective.This report addresses the impact of the practical implementation of national provisions (Austria, France, Moldova, the Netherlands, Serbia and Spain) on the effective access of trafficked persons to residence permits. It considers whether victims of trafficking are thus provided with an accessible durable solution in terms of their rights, safety and dignity. Furthermore, the report explores the international protection needs of trafficked persons and their access to durable solutions.

Refugees and asylum seekers in Europe are increasingly vulnerable to trafficking; some have been trafficked in their home countries, and have managed to escape, others were trafficked during their flight or when they reached a transit country or the country of asylum. While some trafficked persons exiting a situation of trafficking in a foreign country wish to go back home to their families as soon as possible, in other cases, it is just the opposite; they are afraid of being returned to their country of origin because of risks of retaliation by traffickers, rejection by family and/or community, or because they may face the danger of being re-trafficked or subjected to torture or other ill treatment. In such cases, trafficked persons need to be able to access asylum or other forms of complementary protection, which provide opportunities for long-term residence and durable solutions.