Definitions matter: migrants, immigrants, asylum seekers and refugees

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Original Article

The term asylum seeker might be expected to denote those who have not (or not yet) been given international protection. The term refugee should then cover all those who are seeking asylum, regardless of the recognition of their claim – an argument frequently made by organizations such as the Refugee Council. “Refugees” may refer to all those fleeing persecution or only to those with the legal right to remain in the country of refuge (1). However, the research described in this report (a) used the term “refugee” to denote “refugee” and “asylum seeker” (2,3), (b) used the terms “refugee” and “asylum seeker” interchangeably (4–6), or (c) conflated the two (7), since the line between refugee and migrant is “very fuzzy” (8).


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