Op-Ed: “The EU Court of Justice strengthens women’s rights (Case C-621/21 WS)” by Mathias Möschel

Introduction

Can women who have suffered domestic violence and who fear persecution if returned to their home country qualify for refugee or subsidiary protection status under the Qualifications Directive (2011/95/EU, ‘the QD’), i.e., the instrument that determines the standards under which third-country nationals or stateless persons may qualify for such statuses? This was the essence of the question asked by a Bulgarian court to the Court of Justice (‘the Court’) in this case: a Turkish-Kurdish woman and victim of a forced marriage to a violent husband had, upon obtaining a divorce, applied for international protection in Bulgaria on the grounds that she was a victim of domestic violence and that she would be exposed to the risk