EU adopts U.S.-style deportation moves
European lawmakers have quietly moved to expand powers for tracking, detaining and deporting migrants — including transfers to offshore 'return hubs' — mirroring tactics from recent U.S. policy debates and signaling a hardening international approach to asylum. (pbs.org)
The European Commission formally presented the proposal titled “Proposal for a Regulation establishing a common system for the return of third‑country nationals” on March 11, 2025 under COM(2025)101. (eur-lex.europa.eu) The Council adopted a general approach on December 8, 2025 that explicitly allows the EU or member states to strike arrangements with third countries to host so‑called “return hubs” and signalled longer detention periods and extended entry bans in its negotiating position. (consilium.europa.eu) The European Parliament’s LIBE committee set a mandate on March 9, 2026 and plenary members voted on March 26, 2026 to adopt the Parliament’s negotiating position by 389 to 206, clearing the way for inter‑institutional talks with the Council. (migpolgroup.com) (africanews.com) The draft creates a new European Return Order and mandatory mutual recognition mechanisms (phased in, with optional recognition before becoming mandatory), designed to let one member state’s return decision be enforced by another without restarting procedures. (commission.europa.eu) (ecre.org) Key operational changes in the text include expanded grounds for detention and an increase of maximum detention from 18 to 24 months for certain cases, alongside proposals for much longer entry‑ban periods for people subject to return decisions. (ecre.org) (idcoalition.org) Brussels justified the overhaul by noting return effectiveness is low — roughly one in five people with a return decision are removed — a statistic cited by the Commission when launching the proposal. (reliefweb.int) Human‑rights and civil‑society groups, along with UN experts, have warned the proposed regulation risks expanding detention, limiting appeals safeguards and increasing non‑refoulement and due‑process concerns ahead of final trilogue negotiations. (globaldetentionproject.org) (amnesty.org)
