The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) defines who is a Palestinian refugee and which refugees are entitled to UN assistance. UNRWA utilizes a patrilineal model which leaves refugee women who marry non-refugee men ineligible for many benefits and disenfranchises their children. This study takes a critical look at the effects of this model and compares it to the legal norms on gender discrimination set out in conventions and other international instruments, including those established by the UN itself.