Sealed external borders, faster and more stringent asylum request verification procedures, in exchange for — perhaps — better reception standards for the few who manage to obtain a visa. After an extremely long and troubled gestation period, the new Migration and Asylum Pact entered into force across the European Union on 12 June last, having been adopted in May 2024, and now constitutes the cornerstone of the EU's new approach in this area. For the first time, Europe has a comprehensive regulatory framework on migration and asylum, with robust external border protection, strict asylum rules and a balance between solidarity and responsibility. However, the compromise reached has drawn sharp criticism from humanitarian organisations, legal experts and human rights associations, who argue that it represents yet another turn of the key aimed at sealing the so-called Fortress Europe, which has already seen a 55 per cent reduction in illegal border crossings compared to two years ago.

The pillars of the new Migration and Asylum Pact

One of the central elements of the Migration and Asylum Pact concerns the so-called solidarity mechanism. Not towards migrants fleeing wars, famine or lack of opportunity, however, but towards the countries receiving the highest number of arrivals, such as Italy, Greece, Spain and Malta, which can request support from other member states. However, the redistribution of asylum seekers is not fully mandatory: states can choose whether to accept a quota of people, contribute financially, or provide operational and logistical support. In practice, a country that does not wish to participate in relocations can make a financial contribution or support returns. Only in exceptional situations of migration crisis is a more stringent form of solidarity envisaged.

The Pact does not supersede the fundamental principle of the Dublin Regulation, under which the country of first entry generally remains responsible for examining the asylum application. This means that border states, such as Italy, continue to bear the main burden of reception and application assessment procedures. Another significant development is the introduction of a mandatory screening procedure at the external borders of the Union. People arriving irregularly will be subjected, within a maximum of seven days, to identification, fingerprinting, collection of biometric data, health checks and security screenings. The screening also applies to minors. At the end of this phase, the authorities decide whether the person can access the standard asylum procedure or be placed in an accelerated border procedure aimed at rejection or return.

Washington Eye @washington_EY

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EU Launches Major Migration Overhaul as Faster Asylum System Begins

The new pact aims to speed up border screening and returns across Europe, but critics warn rushed decisions could create security gaps and human rights concerns.

#WashingtonEye

12 Jun 2026 · Open on X →

The Migration and Asylum Pact introduces faster procedures for applications deemed manifestly unfounded or submitted by people from countries considered safe (the Pact mentions Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, Kosovo, India, Morocco and Tunisia). In these cases the application can be examined directly in border areas, within a much shorter timeframe than in the past. According to supporters of the reform, this will help reduce administrative backlogs; according to critics, however, it risks curtailing guarantees for asylum seekers, who are subjected to rapid and summary proceedings, and increasing the use of administrative detention.

The Eurodac system is also strengthened — the European database used to register migrants and asylum seekers: in addition to fingerprints, facial photographs and further identification information will be stored, and data may also be collected from minors as young as six years of age. The aim is to improve the tracking of movements within the Union and facilitate the application of competence rules between member states. The reform also provides for more uniform criteria for the recognition of refugee status and subsidiary protection, with greater coordination between national authorities and the competent European agency. Asylum seekers will, however, continue to be tied to the country responsible for their case and will not be able to move freely within the Union until the process is concluded.

A matter of perspective

According to European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen, "migration is a European challenge that must be met with a European solution. An effective, fair and decisive solution. This is what the Migration and Asylum Pact delivers: safer external borders, solidarity between member states, and more efficient procedures for asylum and return. And to tackle the root causes of migration together, we continue to strengthen our relations with global partners".

Avv. Fabio Loscerbo @avvLoscerbo

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Patto Migrazione e Asilo. Brunner parla di primo approccio europeo. Ma senza integrazione l'Europa affronta soltanto una parte del problema ift.tt/8B3xuVH

16 Jun 2026 · Open on X →

So is everything in order? According to lawyer Fabio Loscerbo, an expert in Immigration Law, not quite: the issues addressed by the Pact are "certainly fundamental, but they do not by any means exhaust the complexity of the contemporary migratory phenomenon. Between entry and return there exists an intermediate phase that can last years or even decades and concerns millions of people permanently residing on European territory. It is the phase of integration. And it is precisely on this ground that the new Pact reveals its greatest weakness." For Loscerbo, "the experience of recent years demonstrates instead that the real challenge does not consist solely in deciding how many people may enter European territory or which procedures to apply to asylum applications. The real challenge lies in understanding whether the people who live permanently within our communities are genuinely developing an integration pathway grounded in knowledge of the language, participation in social life, respect for the fundamental rules of civil coexistence and adherence to the constitutional values of the member states."

LIBE Committee Press @EP_Justice

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📢 @EP_Justice backs the agreement on a common system for returning third-country nationals staying illegally in the 🇪🇺 - rapporteur @MalikAzmani

🗳️✅ 44 in favour, ❌ 29 against, ⚪2 abst.

🔗Text: link.europa.eu/jWH4GT

‼️Next steps: plenary debate 16/6 & vote on 17/6.

♥ 3 15 giu 2026 · Apri su X →

The returns chapter

On the other hand, also in early June the Council and Parliament of the European Union reached a provisional agreement on a new regulation on returns, part of the European Pact on Migration, which has now been officially approved in the past few days. The unified rules speed up removal procedures and introduce the establishment of "return hubs" in non-European countries, as well as mutual recognition of expulsion orders among member states: in practice, Europe formally acknowledges the validity of the Italian model of centres in Albania, giving the green light to the possibility of replicating it in other non-EU countries. Unfortunately, return hubs also fail to guarantee full respect for migrants' rights, starting with the difficulty of accessing legal representation.

And that is not all: just yesterday the Italian Parliament gave its final approval to the law on assisted voluntary returns, which provides that anyone who assists a foreign national (lawyers, tax assistance centres, cultural mediators) in participating in a voluntary return programme to their country of origin may receive financial compensation of €615. The measure had been included in the latest security decree, but had drawn a rebuke from President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella, as well as criticism from many quarters, as it was seen as an incentive for lawyers to persuade migrants to return home. The new decree-law has at least sidestepped the constitutional objections by broadening the pool of potential 'assistants' (not only lawyers, but also tax assistance centres, mediators and others) and by providing that the payment be made not solely upon actual return, but in any case at the conclusion of the process, whatever the foreign national ultimately decides.