Organised jointly by the Council of Europe Division on Migration and Refugees and UNHCR

The European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) may, under Rule 39 of its Rules of Court, indicate interim measures to a given State in cases where a person runs an imminent risk of irreparable harm to a Convention right. In the majority of cases, the applicant requests the suspension of an expulsion or an extradition. Under the Court’s case law, interim measures “play a vital role in avoiding irreversible situations that would prevent the Court from properly examining the application and, where appropriate, securing to the applicant the practical and effective benefit of the Convention rights asserted.”^[1] Interim measures are instrumental to the examination and application on the merits of the case and to an effective protection of the ECHR rights at stake. The ECHR plays a crucial role in protecting people seeking international protection from return to persecution and irreparable harm, certain ECHR rights are particularly relevant in the asylum context. Rule 39 interim measures are one illustration of how the European human rights system can effectively safeguard the 1951 Refugee Convention’s key principle of non-refoulement in all 46 CoE Member States and is often a last instance protection tool.

The ECtHR is the only supranational binding mechanism in Europe to prevent refoulement of persons falling under UNHCR’s mandate.

As of 2023, the UNHCR Representation to the European Institutions in Strasbourg decided to fully update the UNHCR Toolkit on How to Request Interim Measures under Rule 39 of the Rules of the European Court of Human Rights for Persons in Need of International Protection (First edition of 2012).

The Toolkit’s new edition better reflects recent legal developments and the growing complexity of the Rule 39 case law and intends to strengthen the protection from refoulement by providing legal practitioners with practical information about Rule 39 interim measures with the European Court of Human Rights and assisting them to prepare their requests under this Rule.

This Toolkit was developed by the UNHCR Representation to the European Institutions in Strasbourg with the assistance of experts, and members of the Registry of the European Court of Human Rights. Its publication also coincides with the latest amendments to Rule 39 on interim measures and the Court’s Practice Direction accompanying the newly amended Rule 39; it now contains detailed guidance as to the substantive and procedural aspects of the Court’s interim measure procedure with a view to bringing greater clarity and transparency to the conduct of proceedings. The amendments were adopted by the Plenary Court on 23 February 2024 following consultations with the Contracting Parties and other relevant stakeholders and entered into force on 28 March 2024, with a purpose to clarify and codify existing practice relating to interim measures.

The new toolkit was published in March 2025.

Aim of the seminar

Marking the opportunity of its publication and to ensure widest possible use of the new Toolkit, on 5 November 2025, UNHCR and the Council of Europe Division on Migration and Refugees will organise a hybrid seminar at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, which will  gather legal professionals and NGOs in order to exchange on existing relevant standards, practices and tools at the end of 2025.

Agenda

The seminar will be an opportunity to raise awareness and strengthen capacity by providing legal practitioners with further practical information about Rule 39 interim measures and assisting them in better preparing their requests under this Rule. By raising Convention-based arguments in the correct manner at domestic level and fully understanding the rationale, scope and procedure of Rule 39, practicing lawyers contribute to safeguarding refugee and human rights law’s common principle of non-refoulement in practice.

Exchange between UNHCR, Council of Europe, practicing lawyers and civil society, who provide support and guidance and who are often at the forefront of addressing refoulement situations, will enable a better response to situations where Rule 39 can make a difference in preserving rights.

The seminar will also explore the specific challenges in relation to interim measures, iincluding their scope and the more technical aspect of the proceedings under Rule 39.

Other information

The participants will be mainly lawyers and organisations with experience in representing applicants before the Court as well as relevant Bar associations and CCBE members.

Organisers: UNHCR Representation to the European Institutions in Strasbourg and the Council of Europe Division on Migration and Refugees.

Working languages will be English and French.