Governance of Migration by Decree: Legal Life of Afghan Migrants in Iran

This working paper provides an overview of governance of Afghan migration in Iran. It argues that governance of Afghan migration is conducted mainly through rule by decree. Such decrees are not preceded by a consultative process and are declared ad hoc. As a result, there is a lack of legal certainty and migrants cannot really anticipate which protection they will get and until when. To make this argument, sources of laws regulating Afghans’ legal and formal life in Iran, including their rights and entitlements based on their documentation status, and impact of these laws in terms of certainty and predictability are studied. This working paper is based on desk research as well as qualitative interviews, the latter being the main source for untangling the governance regime due to scarcity of written sources of law.