The EU Migration Policy

by Ekaterina Leonenkova

World Migration. An issue on the

agenda of the United Nations

Migration data is analysed by The Department

of Economic and Social Affairs of the United
Nations;

Reports on International Migration Policies

include 196 countries, including all 193
Member States of the United Nations, one
Observer State (the Holy See) and two nonmember States (Niue and Cook Islands);

According to the UN statistics, between 1990

and 2013 the number of migrants rose by 154
million, reaching 232 million people, 59% of
whom settled in developed regions.

Main reasons for migration

The reasons are usually classified as economic, social,
political or environmental. Other reasons include
reuniting of families and educational purposes.

Push factors (those in a migrants country of

origin)
lack of services
lack of safety; high crime; war
crop failure: drought; flooding
poverty

Pull factors (those in the country of destination)

higher employment
better services
good climate; more fertile land; lower risk from
natural hazards
safer, less crime; political stability

Immigration flow to the EU states in

the first years of its operation
1998
528 000 people

Germany
7,5 million immigrants

1999
720 000 people

France
3,8 million immigrants

2000
816 000 people

Switzerland
1,2 million immigrants

EU immigration/ emigration processes in

2010-2013 (source: Eurostat 10/6/2015)
Non-EU
nationals

2010

2011

2012

2013

immigrants

1 455953

1 391147

1 352027

1 372789

emigrants

707 927

697 487

753 675

833 730

Germany: number of immigrants in 2013 692700,

emigration 3 times lower;
The UK: number of immigrants - 526000, emigration
twice as low;
France: number of immigrants - 332600, emigration
300800;
Spain: number of immigrants - 280800, the highest
number of emigrants reported in 2013 532300.
A total of 16 of the EU Member States reported more
immigration than emigration in 2013, but in Bulgaria,
Ireland, Greece, Spain, Croatia, Cyprus, Poland,
Portugal,
Romania
emigrants
outnumbered
immigrants.

The policy itself. The main pillars

The 1951 Geneva Refugee Convention and the 1967

Prolocol;

The 1999 Tampere European Council (Finland);

The Dublin Regulation (February, 18th 2003) each Member

state is responsible for examining an asylum application;

The multiannual Hague Programme, adopted at the

European Council of 4and 5November 2004;

The European Pact on immigration and asylum (2008, N.

Sarkozy) shaping a unified approach to both legal ad
illegal migration;

A common immigration policy for Europe 2008 (10

principles, including integrated boarder management,
partnership with non-EU countries, clear rules, for example,
visa policy and blue card network);

The Stockholm Programme 2009-2014 (combating human

trafficking and smuggling; cooperating with migrants home
counties; controlling the EU external boarders)

The main routes

Central Mediterranean Route (Italy

and Malta): More than 120,000 migrants
and refugees arrived in Europe via the
Central Mediterranean between January
and September.

Eastern Mediterranean Route

(Greece/Aegean Sea): The Eastern
Mediterranean has become the primary
maritime route in 2015. More than
350,000 individuals have crossed from
Turkey to Greece (the vast majority to
Greek islands like Lesbos and Kos near
the Turkish coast) in the first nine months
of 2015. Afghan and Pakistani nationals
also arrive via the Eastern Mediterranean.

Western Balkans (Hungary): More

than 155,000 people crossed from Serbia
into Hungary between January and
August. Two primary groups travel this
route: Western Balkan nationals
especially from Kosovo and Albaniaand
migrants and refugees traveling onward
from Greece to reach the rest of the
European Union.

The current situation

More than 487,000 people have arrived at Europes
Mediterranean shores in the first nine months of 2015, double
all of 2014 and the highest number since record keeping
began. Nearly 3,000 people died crossing the Mediterranean
this year alone, not counting those who lost their lives en
route.
The largest number of applications for asylum in the UK alone
came from nationals of Eritrea (3,568), followed by Pakistan
(2,302) and Syria (2,204). A total of 11,600 people were
granted asylum or an alternative form of protection.
The main migrant groups:
1) individuals whose protection claims are likely to be
recognized by European authorities, such as Syrians and
Eritreans;
2) individuals fleeing instability or violence in their home
countries who may not qualify for refugee status but are still at
risk for other reasons including Somalis and some Syrians;
3) migrants who feel compelled to leave their countries for
largely economic reasonsWestern Balkans and sub-Saharan
nationals, for example.

The main obstacles on the way of

solving the problem

The failure to integrate past migrants effectively;

European countries have differing views on both

the goals of integration and the most appropriate
strategies to achieve it;

Public resentment of migrants and fear of

difference leads to discrimination, community
tensions, and occasional violence;

The fear of public resistance to migrants, and to EU

involvement in their conditions of stay;

The key levers for integration (such as employment

policy and family reunification) fall under the
authority of different directorates-general at the
European Commission, different committees in the
European Parliament, and different ministries at the
national levelwith the usual barriers thus created
to developing a coordinated strategy.

Main policy areas

Reducing the incentives for irregular migration: investigating and

prosecuting smugglers networks partly by strengthening Frontex
and build stronger partnerships with key countries outside the EU;

Saving lives and securing external borders: financing initiatives in

North Africa to help the region become stronger in search and
rescue activities, seeing if a European border guard system should
be established.

A strong common asylum policy: ensuring a full implementation of

the common European asylum system. This would be achieved by
promoting identification and fingerprinting, seeing how a single
asylum decision process would ensure equal treatment of asylum
seekers in Europe, and evaluating the Dublin system by mid-2016.

A new policy on legal migration: keeping Europe an attractive

destination for migrants in a time of demographic decline,
through actions such as reviewing the Blue Card scheme, reprioritising integration policies.

The distribution of refugees among

EU member states