Attachments
What are Complementary Pathways? Complementary pathways are safe and regulated avenues for refugees that complement resettlement by providing lawful stay in a third country where their international protection needs are met. They are additional to resettlement and do not substitute the protection afforded to refugees under the international protection regime.
Complementary Pathways include humanitarian admission, private or community sponsorship programmes or humanitarian visas, which are intended for persons in need of international protection. Other complementary pathways for admission to third countries are family reunification, education and labour opportunities; these are existing entry or migration avenues that refugees may be eligible to apply for, and which should be made increasingly available to persons in need of international protection.
The three-year (2019-2021) Strategy on Resettlement and Complementary Pathways is a vehicle to implement the objective of the Global Compact on Refugees to increase responsibility sharing through expanded access to third-country solutions for refugees. The Strategy, which was developed and committed to by States, UNHCR and other stakeholders contains a vision of 2 million refugees admitted to third-countries through Complementary Pathways, in addition to 1 million refugees admitted through resettlement by 2028.