Recommended Principles and Guidelines on Human Rights at International Borders

International borders are not zones of exclusion or exception for human rights obligations. States are entitled to exercise jurisdiction at their international borders, but they must do so in light of their human rights obligations. This means that the human rights of all persons at international borders must be respected in the pursuit of border control, law enforcement and other State objectives, regardless of which authorities perform border governance measures and where such measures take place. OHCHR has developed a set of Recommended Principles and Guidelines on Human Rights at International Borders with a view to translating the international human rights framework into practical border governance measures. The Principles and Guidelines are the result of wide-ranging expert consultations to draw up normative guidelines on the governance of international borders. They are intended to inform the work of States, international agencies and other stakeholders with an interest in human rights-based border governance. The Principles and Guidelines accompanied the report of the Secretary-General on Protection of Migrants (A/69/277) presented to the 69th session of the General Assembly held in 2014. Member States have taken note of the Principles and Guidelines in General Assembly resolutions on Protection of Migrants and on Migrant children and adolescents.