The present study aims to understand the development of the concept of safe third country and its consequences for the international protection of refugees, based on the principle of non-refoulement. It seeks to analyze how this idea has been applied by States, through international treaties with the purpose of transferring asylum seekers to supposedly safe third countries. Moreover, the research analyzes the jurisprudence of the Inter-American and European Human Rights Systems on the returns of refugees and migrants, as well as the dialogue between international courts on this topic, especially considering the regional specificities of the American continent. Therefore, this research demonstrates that countries policies based on the notion of safe third country are mechanisms to transfer their responsibilities in relation to refuge and represent obstacles to guaranteeing the human rights of refugees.