Senior Legal Associate

Deadline for Applications

June 26, 2026

Hardship Level (not applicable for home-based)

A (least hardship)

Family Type (not applicable for home-based)

Family

Staff Member / Affiliate Type

CONTR Local Senior Level Support

Target Start Date

2026-04-01

Terms of Reference

During the past 60 years, UNHCR and the Government of Türkiye have been working together in close partnership. In 2013, Türkiye adopted a new legislation, the Law on Foreigners and International Protection (LFIP) and established a central civilian authority in charge of procedures for foreigners. As the main partner of the Turkish State in the field of international protection, UNHCR Türkiye provides support to the Presidency of Migration Management (PMM) and the relevant national institutions.

UNHCR Representation in Türkiye operates through a Country Office based in Ankara, and through sub-offices and field offices in Gaziantep, Istanbul, Izmir, and Ankara, as well as field units.

Occupational Safety and Health Considerations

To view occupational safety and health considerations for specific duty stations, please visit this link:

https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel

The Senior Legal Associate will assist the Protection Unit in ensuring that protection standards, operational procedures, and practices in protection delivery are aligned with international standards. The incumbent will support the Unit in the implementation of activities carried out in cooperation with partners, including the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, under the overall supervision of the Senior Protection Officer. The scope of work will include the provision of legal guidance both internally and to UNHCR’s partners through the activities and daily interactions conducted by the Protection Unit. S/he will support the Unit’s initiatives related to legislative aspects and contribute to the preparation of legal advice, as well as the drafting of position papers and guidelines on pertinent legal and operational issues.

S/he will also work in constantly monitoring relevant legal developments at the national and regional levels and will provide recommendations to inform the Unit’s advocacy and interventions to expand protection response and to ensure access to rights by refugees. The incumbent will be conducting researches and following the judicial developments at the national and regional level, will be expected to make briefing on legislative/judicial developments for the purpose of to feed into briefing kits and internal papers.

S/he will be supporting the preparation of legal materials that are shared with the national counterparts as recommendations. S/he will be engaged in preparing compilation of good practices and comparative charts on a broad spectrum of topics and reporting of the developments. Among tasks, s/he will be requested to provide assistance in UNHCR's legal publications, in dissemination of legal information on refugee law, in UNHCR's legal website and other legal advice as needed.

The incumbent will also support the Unit’s activities in strengthening the national capacity of relevant actors, including NGOs and lawyers through support organizing capacity-building activities through preparation of materials and presenting the topics. In this regard, s/he will represent the Office externally on protection doctrine and policy as needed and under the guidance by the Head of the Unit.

Required qualifications, language(s) and work experience:

• Bachelor's or equivalent or higher in Law, Political Science, International Relations, Social Sciences or a related field.

Required/mandatory:

• Research and Analytical Thinking

• Planning and Organizing

• Stakeholder Management

• Data collection, compilation and reporting

• Strong drafting skills

• Accountability

• Client & results orientation

• Commitment to continuous learning

• Judgement and decision making

• Negotiation and conflict resolution

• Organizational awareness

• Stakeholder management

• Excellent knowledge of Turkish and fluency in English

• Strong interpersonal and communication skills

• Ability to work in a team

Desirable:

• Knowledge of other UN languages is an asset.

• Knowledge of International Refugee Law and Human Rights Law and ability to apply the relevant legal principles.

• Completion of the UNHCR Learning programmes or specific training relevant to functions of the position.

• Good knowledge of UNHCR financial rules, procedures and processes.

• Good computer skills

• Prior exposure to UNHCR refugee operations and functions relating to office

administration and programme activities.

Minimum years of work experience

Minimum 2 years of relevant professional experience in protection, asylum, migration management, or related areas.

Language

Required: Turkish mother tongue and excellent command of English

Desirable: Any other UN language (C1)

Monitoring and Progress Controls

The incumbent will receive guidance from the Senior Protection Officer in the operation and will be under the direct supervision of the Assistant Protection Officer. UNHCR Manual, Operations Plans, UN, and UNHCR financial/budgetary rules and regulations will guide the work of the Project Associate. S/he is expected to stay abreast of the challenges posed to the region by the political context, the UN and humanitarian reform, and institutional developments.

Individual Contractor Agreements

Definition:

Individual contractor is an individual engaged by UNHCR under a contract of limited duration to provide skills or knowledge for the performance of a specific task or piece of work and engaged under an individual contract issued directly by UNHCR. They are neither staff members of UNHCR under the Staff Regulations and Rules, nor Officials for the purpose of the Convention on the Privileges and Immunities of the United Nations of 13 February 1946.

Contract Duration/Renewal:

Any extension of an individual contract is subject to operational needs, satisfactory service, and availability of funds. There is no expectation of renewal or conversion of the individual contract beyond its expiry date.

Working Hours:

40 hours per week, inclusive of mandatory night shifts, possibility of work on weekends and official holidays as part of the assigned schedule.

Leave Entitlements:

Annual leave at the rate of two and a half working days per month.

Sick leave at the rate of two working days for each month of service.

Medical Coverage:

Cigna Health Insurance, also available optionally for eligible dependents subject to additional contribution rates.

Remuneration:

Remuneration at the level of the vacancy based on the International Civil Services Commission (ICSC) salary scale.

Legal Requirements:

Individual Contractors must comply with relevant local legislation, including but not limited to those relating to taxation, social security requirements, licenses, work permits and visas, and other details stipulated in the terms of their contract. UNHCR undertakes no liability for taxes and social security contributions, duties or other contributions payable by the individual contract holder on payments made under the individual contract. The individual contract holders will not be reimbursed such taxes or granted any other benefit, payment or subsidy which is not expressly provided for in the contract under which they are engaged. UNHCR may require the individual contract holder to provide evidence within a reasonable time that they have registered for and are paying applicable taxation and social security to the relevant national authorities

Important to note: The Individual Contractor shall be responsible for paying any tax levied by his/her Government or other entities on his/her UNHCR earnings. Under no circumstances shall UNHCR be responsible for paying or reimbursing such taxes.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) Clearances and ID Cards:

Applications of non-Turkish candidates are subject to MFA clearance before any offer can be made. For cleared candidates who are recruited, MFA ID card applications will be processed while the issuance lies within the authority of the MFA.

Important to note: Once the MFA ID is issued, the time spent under an Individual Contract no longer counts toward eligibility for Turkish citizenship.

Application Requirements:

Applicants must ensure:

•To apply for the vacancies timely through Workday. No late applications are accepted.

•To reflect their previous experience, language skills (including the mother tongue) and other assets in their Workday applicant profiles duly. Shortlisting is done based on the information provided in the applications only.

•To attach their valid residence permits (both sides visible) in case they are non-Turkish nationals.

PLEASE DO NOT USE TURKISH CHARACTERS IN YOUR NAME & SURNAME INFORMATION.

Recruitment as a UNHCR staff member and engagement under a UNHCR affiliate scheme or as an intern is subject to successful reference checks and integrity clearance.

Only short-listed candidates will be notified. The recruitment process might include written test and/or oral interview for this job opening. No late applications will be accepted.

External candidates should be legally present in Türkiye at the time of application, recruitment and hire.

Non-Turkish citizens are required to upload their residence permits or relevant documents under the ‘Certifications’ section, by selecting the type as ‘Personnel Administration – Other’, in order to be considered for this job opening.

Applications by non-Turkish citizens will NOT be considered if a valid residence permit is not attached to the application.

For further information on how to apply, please visit ‘UNHCR - Application and Selection’ page, at https://www.unhcr.org/how-to-apply.html.

Standard Job Description

Required Languages

,

,

Desired Languages

,

,

Additional Qualifications

Skills

Education

Certifications

Work Experience

Other information

This position doesn't require a functional clearance

Remote

No