An oxidative halogenation and optional dehydrogenation process involving contacting a reactant hydrocarbon having three or more carbon atoms, such as propane or propene, or a halogenated derivative thereof, with a source of halogen, and optionally, a source of oxygen in the presence of a rare earth halide or rare earth oxyhalide catalyst, so as to form a halogenated hydrocarbon product, such as allyl chloride, having three or more carbon atoms and having a greater number of halogen substituents as compared with the reactant hydrocarbon, and optionally, an olefinic co-product, such as propene. The less desired of the two products, that is, the halogenated hydrocarbon or the olefin as the case may be, can be recycled to the process to maximize the production of the desired product.