Protection Legal Officer

Saint Andrew’s Refugee Services, Cairo

Call for Applications: Protection Program, Legal Officer

Founded in 1979, StARS is a refugee service provider in central Cairo that works to enhance the quality of life for refugees and vulnerable migrants through five broad program areas: education, psychosocial, legal, community outreach and unaccompanied youth and children support services. We provide high-quality services meeting the unaddressed needs of refugees, and we provide a safe and inclusive space for displaced people to come together as a community. We work for refugees, with refugees, to make rights recognition a reality.

StARS’ Mission: Driven by a commitment to solidarity and human dignity, StARS works both as displaced people and for displaced people to support the resilience and leadership of individuals and communities in their pursuit of an enhanced quality of life.

StARS’ Vision: StARS envisions a future where displaced people and the societies they join stand in solidarity, recognizing the strength and leadership of refugees. In this world, the displaced thrive with dignity, claiming their rights and enriching our shared human experience.

Standard of Professional Conduct: StARS and all its staff must adhere to the values and principles outlined in StARS’ Code of Conduct, Child Safeguarding Policy, and PSEAH policy.

Commitment to Gender, Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion: StARS is committed to creating a diverse, inclusive, respectful, and safe work environment where all persons are treated fairly, with dignity and respect. StARS expressly prohibits and will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, retaliation, or bullying in any work setting. We aim to increase the representation of women, people that are from country and communities we serve, and people who identify as races and ethnicities that are under-represented in global power structures.

We serve people from many places, including Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iraq, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria and Yemen.

To learn more please visit our website: www.stars-egypt.org or our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/standrewsrefugeeservices?fref=ts

Description of the Program: Refugee Legal Aid Program

The Refugee Legal Aid Program provides advice and representation to refugees seeking recognition by UNHCR through refugee status determination procedures in Egypt, assists refugees in accessing resettlement to safe third countries, and advises refugees on protection matters. The Refugee Legal Aid Program is seeking a Protection Senior Legal Officer to assist and advise vulnerable refugees on protection matters.

Role

Under the supervision of the Protection Program Coordinator and Protection Senior Legal Officers, the Protection Legal Officer is responsible for the provision of legal advice, referrals, and emergency assistance to refugees and vulnerable migrants accessing the Refugee Legal Aid Program drop-in and emergency response clinic. This includes conducting intake assessments with and providing the relevant counseling or referral for walk-in clients approaching to request assistance with pressing protection risks, and those in need of counseling or guidance on UNHCR registration, refugee status determination, or resettlement processing. The Protection Legal Officer will prepare reports and referrals for legal assistance or UNHCR registration, and internal referrals for refugee status determination or protection screening. Further responsibilities include providing guidance and support for individuals seeking access to complementary pathways and identifying cases that the program can support to access a durable solution through complementary pathways.

Responsibilities

Legal and Technical

• Conduct intake and screening for identifying at-risk refugees and vulnerable migrants to be prioritized for the Refugee Legal Aid Program’s services.
• Conduct regular half-day shifts for the Refugee Legal Aid Program’s drop-in and emergency response clinic, and to be present for back-up coverage of other shifts as necessary.
• Maintain good working knowledge of UNHCR policies and procedures.
• Collect information from clients reporting the detention of refugees and migrants and draft reports.
• Assess the domestic legal needs of refugees and migrants, provide advice on personal status proceedings and criminal proceedings, and prepare referrals to UNHCR for counseling and legal assistance as appropriate.
• Provide advice to refugees and migrants on procedures to access residency permits, and prepare referrals to UNHCR for counseling and legal assistance for refugees denied residency as appropriate.
• Provide advice on UNHCR’s registration procedures and prepare referrals to UNHCR to resolve registration related issues as appropriate.
• Provide general legal counseling and assistance to refugees regarding their refugee status determination procedures.
• Provide general assistance and counseling to refugees regarding access to resettlement and complementary pathways, including family reunification.
• Assist with follow-up communication and inquiries to UNHCR regarding legal, registration, refugee status determination, and resettlement cases.
• Ensure that assessments conducted through the drop-in and emergency response clinic assess extra-legal needs of clients.
• Undertake comprehensive case management practices including maintaining and updating electronic databases and records for each client, and keeping detailed notes of all casework activities.
• Adhere to the Nairobi Code of Ethics, the StARS Policies and Procedures Manual, and the StARS Code of Conduct.

Programmatic

• Assist the Refugee Legal Aid Program Coordinators in development and implementation of team policies and procedures.
• Provide case reporting data to the Refugee Legal Aid Program Coordinators as requested for purposes of accurately reporting work to senior management, funders, and others.
• Attend and contribute to team meetings and other staff meetings.
• Engage proactively in promoting self-care among colleagues.
• Maintain high quality legal advice and representation standards and a refugee rights-based approach.

Finance and Administration

• Undergo probation and regular performance appraisals.

Communication and Reporting

• Communicate regularly with Protection Senior Legal Officers and Refugee Legal Aid Program Coordinators, reporting on all major issues and developments in the field and within the Refugee Legal Aid Program.
• Assist the Protection Senior Legal Officers and Refugee Legal Aid Program Coordinators to conduct trend analysis through review of the Refugee Legal Aid Program’s drop-in and emergency response services.
• Promote information-sharing within the Refugee Legal Aid Program and StARS on all issues affecting the populations StARS serve.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications and Experience

The ideal candidate will be energetic, articulate, and comfortable interacting with diverse segments of society. They will have demonstrated a firm commitment to human rights and refugee issues.

Essential Qualifications

• Current or previous lived experience of forced displacement.
• English being the official language of UNHCR Egypt and StARS, the Protection Senior Legal Officer must have a strong command in oral and written English.
• Fluency in Arabic or another language spoken by refugee communities in Egypt.
• Experience working with refugees in legal or protection issues OR an undergraduate university degree in a related field (international development, international law, development or political studies) with relevant experience OR a qualified lawyer in any jurisdiction (J.D., LLB or equivalent) with relevant experience.
• Excellent legal research, analytical, and drafting skills.
• Knowledge of UNHCR guidelines and procedures.
• High computer literacy level.
• Knowledge of the general protection situation and vulnerabilities of refugees in Egypt.
• A demonstrated commitment to and sensitivity toward vulnerable or displaced people.
• Ability to live and work in a fluid security environment.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment, well organized, self-motivated, and reliable.
• Demonstrated compassion for refugees and displaced people.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a team as well as individually.
• A positive attitude and sensitive manner when dealing with clients including a range of interviewing skills for dealing with challenging scenarios, particularly in advocating for survivors of violence, trafficking, torture, and sexual and gender-based violence.

Desirable Characteristics

• Life and work experience in Egypt or with an urban refugee population.

Working Hours: The Protection Legal Officer is expected to be at work for 40 hours per week, between the hours of 9am and 5pm, from Sunday to Thursday. Longer hours, evening and weekend work are sometimes necessary. Work will be conducted both in StARS premises and also in refugee communities and centers.

Reporting to: Protection Program Coordinator

StARS salaries are standardized per position according to a pay scale and are not negotiable based on the individual experiences and qualifications of the candidate. StARS salaries are competitive with the local market. Position salary will be discussed at the shortlisting and interview stage.

This position is subject to a three-month probationary period, at which time the employee’s performance will be reviewed.

Closing date for applications: 14 February 2026

Anticipated Starting date: 22 February 2026

To apply: Please send your Cover Letter and CV and brief legal writing sample to applications@stars-egypt.org using the subject line “Protection Legal Officer”. All applications should provide contact information for two professional/academic reference (referees will only be contacted after interviews).

Note: Only short-listed applicants will be contacted for an interview.

StARS salaries are standardized per position according to a pay scale and are not negotiable based on the individual experiences and qualifications of the candidate. StARS salaries are competitive with the local market. Position salary will be discussed at the shortlisting and interview stage.

This position is subject to a three-month probationary period, at which time the employee’s performance will be reviewed.

Qualifications and Experience

The ideal candidate will be energetic, articulate, and comfortable interacting with diverse segments of society. They will have demonstrated a firm commitment to human rights and refugee issues.

Essential Qualifications

• Current or previous lived experience of forced displacement.
• English being the official language of UNHCR Egypt and StARS, the Protection Senior Legal Officer must have a strong command in oral and written English.
• Fluency in Arabic or another language spoken by refugee communities in Egypt.
• Experience working with refugees in legal or protection issues OR an undergraduate university degree in a related field (international development, international law, development or political studies) with relevant experience OR a qualified lawyer in any jurisdiction (J.D., LLB or equivalent) with relevant experience.
• Excellent legal research, analytical, and drafting skills.
• Knowledge of UNHCR guidelines and procedures.
• High computer literacy level.
• Knowledge of the general protection situation and vulnerabilities of refugees in Egypt.
• A demonstrated commitment to and sensitivity toward vulnerable or displaced people.
• Ability to live and work in a fluid security environment.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment, well organized, self-motivated, and reliable.
• Demonstrated compassion for refugees and displaced people.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing.
• Demonstrated ability to work in a team as well as individually.
• A positive attitude and sensitive manner when dealing with clients including a range of interviewing skills for dealing with challenging scenarios, particularly in advocating for survivors of violence, trafficking, torture, and sexual and gender-based violence.

Desirable Characteristics

• Life and work experience in Egypt or with an urban refugee population.