General information about legal migration

The right to freedom of movement is a fundamental human right.

 Article 13 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted in 1948 states that “Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state. Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.” The European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 1950 specifies the scope of exercising this right. It states that “everyone lawfully within the territory of a State shall, within that territory, have the right to liberty of movement and freedom to choose his residence”, and sets the grounds for restricting the right to freedom of movement.   

It should be noted that the freedom of movement does not include an absolute and universal right to enter any country of choice though this is exactly the missing element of the right to freedom of movement that people often want to have. Moreover, the existing international norms stipulate that issuing an entry permit to the foreigner is a sovereign right of the country and the foreigners who enter or reside in the country concerned by breaking the rules set forth by its legislation are considered illegal migrants.     

How to enter and reside in a foreign country legally?

It is possible on one of the following grounds:

Family reunion

Family members of a person legally residing in the country can arrive to that country to reside with their relative. The spouse, minor children and parents in the custody are considered as family members.

Education

A person admitted to an educational institution of the given country can enter and reside in that country during studies. However, the entry will be granted only with the evidence that he/she (a third party or foundation) can pay all tuition and living costs.   

Employment

In this case the entry is granted if there is a permit to work in that country and a labor contract with an employer. Usually, this opportunity is given to highly qualified specialists. However, the majority of countries set out rather high entry standards even for them such as appropriate education, sufficient work history and experience, excellent knowledge of foreign language, fairly high labor contract salary for the country, etc.    

Asylum seekers

The right to seek and find asylum in other countries is enshrined both in international legal documents (Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1951 Geneva Convention on Refugees) and domestic constitutions and laws of several countries. Granting an asylum includes the principle of non-refoulment and the possibility of staying in the country as long as protection is required. In other words, the person reaching the border crossing point of a country and seeking asylum therein shall be granted entry into the country and remain there at least until a negative decision on the application is made.