Migration Jurisprudence from the South › Belgium

Paposhvili v. Belgium (Grand Chamber)

European Court of Human Rights · Belgium · 2016-12-13 · Regional court or body

Citation: App. no. 41738/10
Type of case: Constitutional and human rights
Outcome: Decided for the migrant side

Question

May a seriously ill man be deported without checking whether he would get treatment at home?

What the court decided

No. Removal would breach Article 3 where there is a real risk of serious, rapid and irreversible decline due to lack of treatment, unless the state assesses that risk.

In plain language

A Georgian man with leukaemia faced deportation from Belgium. The Grand Chamber said Belgium had to check whether he could get treatment before sending him away.

Dalam bahasa sederhana

Seorang pria Georgia penderita leukemia akan dideportasi dari Belgia. Majelis Agung menyatakan Belgia wajib memeriksa apakah ia bisa mendapat perawatan sebelum memulangkannya.

Pertanyaan: Bolehkah orang yang sakit parah dideportasi tanpa memeriksa apakah ia akan mendapat perawatan di negaranya?

What happened afterwards

2016-12-13: Judgment.

Sources

HUDOC (judgment)

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Cite as: Institute for Migrant Rights (2026), Migration Jurisprudence from the South, version 0.1, https://theimr.org/court-decisions/d/echr-paposhvili-2016/. This page summarizes a court decision for research and advocacy; it is not legal advice.

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