EU sees rise in deportation rates for non-EU migrants

UNITED NATIONS: A growing proportion of non-European Union citizens ordered to leave EU territory are being returned to countries outside the bloc as part of efforts to rein in irregular migration, data from the EU’s statistics office shows.

The deportation success rate reached 29.5 percent in the first quarter of 2024, up from 21.6 percent in the same period in 2022, according to data published on Friday by Eurostat. Over the same period, the number of deportation orders issued increased by around 15 percent while deportations following orders issued increased by around 58 percent. “With the new Return Roadmap, action is underway to support member states in speeding up returns and facilitating reintegration,” a European Commission spokesperson said. “More frequent use of mutual recognition of return decisions is also helping to accelerate the process,” the spokesperson said, referring to agreements between EU nations and migrants’ countries of origin.

Since 2016, the 27-nation EU has sealed pacts with Mauritania, Tunisia, Turkey and most recently Egypt as it seeks to curb irregular migration, a move criticised by human rights groups for ignoring humanitarian law.