Key facts
- The EU's new migration and asylum rules take effect on Friday.
- The reforms include beefed-up border screenings for irregular migrants.
- A solidarity mechanism requires member states to relocate asylum-seekers or pay €20,000 per person.
- An emergency response plan is in place for unexpected migration surges.
- Human rights groups are concerned about increased detention and potential disregard for humanitarian concerns.
The European Union's comprehensive new migration and asylum rules have come into effect, aiming to strengthen border controls and establish a more equitable distribution of asylum-seekers among member states. The reforms, which follow years of political deadlock, introduce mandatory identity and security screenings for irregular migrants at the EU's external borders, lasting up to seven days.
Under the new system, asylum applications from individuals considered a security risk or those from countries with consistently low asylum approval rates (at least 80% rejection) will undergo accelerated processing, potentially within 12 weeks, at centers near external borders. This aims to address the issue of prolonged decision-making processes that have burdened frontline states like Italy, Greece, and Malta.
A key component is the solidarity mechanism, which obliges all member states to contribute to managing migration flows. Countries can either accept a set number of asylum-seekers or provide a financial contribution of €20,000 per individual to nations under pressure. A minimum of 30,000 asylum-seekers are expected to be covered by this relocation system annually.
The package also includes contingency plans for unexpected surges in migration, similar to the crisis experienced in 2015-2016. These measures could allow for reduced protections and longer detention periods for asylum-seekers at external borders, particularly in cases of 'instrumentalisation' of migration flows by neighboring countries.
Despite the reforms, significant implementation challenges remain, with a dozen member states yet to finalize necessary infrastructure and database preparations. Human rights organizations have voiced strong concerns, arguing that the new rules could lead to the de facto detention of most migrants, including children, and that rushed decision-making processes may result in further detention periods. They also worry that humanitarian considerations are being overshadowed by political pressures, especially with a new package of measures to boost deportations currently advancing.