When did it become a thing for countries to receieve refugees to help them out?

by -14k-

I suppose there was some kind of refugee programs that might have been unofficial or non-governmental - maybe church based? - before immigration laws became a big deal? Was there some kind of transition from that to a more government-sponsored/controlled and legal implementation?

I'm obviously thinking about the more recent times say post Enlightenment, but anything along the same lines that predates that is interesting too! Are there any good stories from antiquity or was refugee aid not really a thing back then?

poobly

Follow up question: Would Irish immigrants escaping the famine be considered refugees?

jimros

Political asylum as a concept goes back to ancient times. States would allow political asylum to individuals persecuted in their home countries.

Post WW2 the international refugee system really developed with:

  1. Conventions outlining the obligation of states to give asylum claimants a fair hearing and not return them to persecution.

and

  1. UN refugee camps and efforts to resettle their residents elsewhere.

States each have their own systems to evaluate asylum claims, but they are obligated to give each claimant a hearing to determine whether they face persecution in their home country. States also choose how many (if any) people they are willing to resettle from refugee camps every year. The UN determines that the camp inhabitants are in fact refugees, so the resettling country generally does not need to redetermine that.

I'm not an expert on the Irish Potato Famine, but generally speaking you are only a refugee if you are fleeing persecution, not hunger or poor economic conditions.