Brussels
\nAn overhaul of immigration and asylum policy enters into force across the European Union on Friday, a decade in the making, as EU countries have come under pressure from far-right nationalist parties.
\nThe EU-wide agreement introduces stricter border controls, faster case processing, expanded digital tools to track asylum applications and increased deportations. It was adopted in 2024 with a two-year implementation period.
\nEuropean Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the pact as \u201cfair and firm\u201d, and said it would deliver \u201cmore secure external borders, solidarity between member States and more efficient procedures for asylum and return\u201d.
\nIt is the EU\u2019s primary collective response to demands for change that have grown in the decade since 2015, when more than a million people arrived in Europe to seek asylum, mostly Syrians fleeing civil war and trekking across the continent on foot.
\nRead: EU to restore Syria relations, strengthen trade and security ties, document shows
\nBut levels of readiness for the changes vary across the 27 EU member states, which has cast some doubt over how quickly the overhaul will take effect and how effective it will be.
\n\u201cWe have to realise that nearly no member state is ready to 100%. And that\u2019s even more disappointing because it\u2019s not that we started at zero,\u201d said Birgit Sippel, a centre\u2011left German EU lawmaker.
\nMember states are still struggling to put the complex new rules in place, even as a tough stance on migration is likely to be a key element of election campaigns in France, Greece, Italy, Poland and Spain next year.
\n\u201cThe political centre of gravity has already shifted significantly rightward over the past decade,\u201d said Roberto Forin of the Mixed Migration Centre (MMC), a research centre collecting data along migration routes. \u201cEach election cycle risks normalising positions that would have been considered extreme not long ago.\u201d
\nFalse dichotomy
\nSome critics argue the reforms rely too heavily on deterrence and overlook the root causes of migration, including conflict, poverty and political repression.
\nForin noted a survey his group conducted last year of more than 4,000 migrants along Mediterranean routes, which found 64% were undeterred by EU and national policies, and fewer than 1% said they had abandoned plans as a result of policy action. \u201cThe debate has been trapped in a false dichotomy \u2026 as if the only way to demonstrate control is to restrict and deter,\u201d he said.
\nThe pact introduces a new \u201csolidarity mechanism\u201d requiring EU member states that receive fewer asylum applications either to accept relocations or provide financial contributions or operational support to countries where more arrive.
\nHowever, critics say it lacks strong enforcement, relying on political pressure that could fuel tensions between states.
\nMember states are keen to keep arrivals low despite easing immigration pressures. EU data show irregular arrivals fell 26% last year to their lowest level since 2021, with asylum applications also declining.
\n\u201cI would expect member states to do everything they can to keep arrivals, and pressure on their asylum systems, low, to reduce the risk that the rules are put to the test too early,\u201d said Alberto Horst Neidhardt, senior policy analyst at European Policy Centre.
\nEuropean countries are keen on setting up centres outside the bloc where failed asylum seekers can be deported.
\nThe European Commission says it is backing implementation with new funding, and has proposed a \u20ac6.34 billion ($6.8 billion) budget for migration, border management and internal security in the next seven-year budget to support the rollouts.
\nThe pact lists safeguards aimed at protecting rights for vulnerable groups. However, rights groups and analysts warn the new framework limits access to asylum and weakens protections. The expanded use of detention can keep asylum seekers held for several months and may restrict access to services and rights.
\n\u201cOur fear is that bad law coupled with an unwillingness to enforce standards \u2026 leads to a continuation of this race to the bottom,\u201d said Minos Mouzourakis, a lawyer at Greece-based non-profit Refugee Support Aegean.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Brussels An overhaul of immigration and asylum policy enters into force across the European Union on Friday, a decade in the making, as EU countries have come under pressure from far-right nationalist parties. The EU-wide agreement introduces stricter border controls, faster case processing, expanded digital tools to track asylum applications and increased deportations. It was …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":99012,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-99029","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99029","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99029"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99029\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":99041,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99029\/revisions\/99041"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/99012"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99029"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99029"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nabanews.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99029"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}