Migration has been 1 of the biggest political and social challenges for the European Union for many years. Especially after the 2015 migration crisis, associate States were forced to tackle the problem of mass influx of refugees and migrants from regions affected by armed conflicts, poorness and political instability. The current migration management strategy has proved inadequate, leading to many disputes between EU countries regarding work for receiving migrants and protecting external borders.
In consequence to these challenges, the European Union has launched a improvement of its migration and asylum policy aimed at creating a more effective and solidarity-based strategy for managing legal migration. At the same time, fresh solutions are intended to increase border safety and to improve asylum procedures, both in support and in many controversy.
Generate the fresh EU migration policy
The origins of the EU's common migration policy can already be sought in the 1980s, erstwhile the Single European Act was established, which laid the foundations for a single European marketplace and the free movement of persons. The introduction of this rule made it essential to coordinate visa and migration policy as the abolition of interior border controls required strengthening the protection of the EU's external borders [1].
The next step was the Schengen Agreement abolished border controls between many European countries, creating a free movement zone. Together with this, common rules on visas, police cooperation and external border control are introduced [2].
After the Maastricht Treaty established the European Union, asylum migration and border control were integrated into the alleged 3rd pillar of the EU, namely intergovernmental cooperation. This meant that countries had begun to coordinate migration activities, but decisions continued mainly at national level, in accordance with the Dublin Convention, which defines the State liable for examining the asylum application [3].
However, a breakthrough for migration policy has only just occurred in the Treaty of Amsterdam. It has moved asylum, visa and migration from intergovernmental cooperation to Community law. The Common European Asylum strategy (CEAS) and the integration of the Schengen strategy into EU law began then. On the another hand, asylum, refugees, immigration and border controls were transferred to the 1st Pillar of the EU (European Community), which meant more frequent usage of majority voting and joint decision-making with the European Parliament [4].
In the early 19th century, the EU strategy on migration, asylum and safety began to be included in several-year programmes. This is how the Hague Programme for 2005-2010 was created, which envisaged the improvement of a common asylum system, better border control, the fight against illegal migration and cooperation with countries of origin of migrants [5]. Many groundbreaking migration systems were besides adopted at the time. The Return Directive of 2008 established common rules on the return of migrants residing in the EU illegally. It defines deportation procedures, maximum detention time and legal guarantees for migrants. Its nonsubjective was to harmonise return policies in EU countries [6]. EU Blue Card was besides introduced, a strategy allowing highly skilled workers from outside the EU to stay and work legally in EU countries to attract professionals and increase the competitiveness of the European economy [7]. The Stockholm Programme continued to make the EU migration policy for the period 2010-2014 and focused more on the protection of migrants' rights, the integration of foreigners with nationals of associate States and solidarity between EU countries on asylum [8].
The emergence of the current EU migration policy is primarily linked to the migration crisis, which intensified in Europe from 2015 to 2016. During this period hundreds of thousands of migrants and refugees arrived in European countries, mainly from Syria, Afghanistan and North African countries. The causes of migration were armed conflicts, political instability, persecution and hard economical situation in the countries of origin of migrants. The mass influx of the population revealed the weaknesses of the current EU migration system, peculiarly the Dublin system, according to which the work for examining the asylum application rested mainly on the country of first entry of the migrants into the Union. In practice, this meant a immense burden for border countries specified as Greece, Italy or Spain, which were not prepared to receive specified a large number of people. The migration crisis has besides led to political tensions between associate States. any countries advocated compulsory relocation of migrants and greater solidarity within the EU, while others opposed imposing restrictions on the reception of refugees. In many countries, support for anti-immigration groups, which pointed to security, social integration and economical costs of migration [9], has besides increased.
In consequence to these problems, the European Commission has started work on reforming the common migration and asylum policy. The aim of the fresh solutions was to make a more effective migration management strategy which, on the 1 hand, would let for better protection of the EU's external borders and, on the another hand, would supply better asylum procedures and greater cooperation between associate States.
Establishment of a fresh EU migration pact
The fresh Pact on Migration and Asylum aims to make a more effective and uniform migration management strategy throughout the community. Its main nonsubjective is to reconcile the protection of the EU's external borders with respect for human rights and the principles of solidarity between associate States. This policy is based on 4 main pillars [10].
The first pillar is strong external borders. The EU assumes a more detailed control of people crossing the borders of the community. Migrants who do not meet the conditions of entry are to be registered, to undergo identity verification, safety checks and wellness tests. An crucial part of the improvement is besides the expansion of the Eurodac system, which has been transformed from the existing database into a full asylum and migration system. It is intended to make it possible to identify asylum seekers and irregular migrants more effectively. The fresh policy besides introduces mandatory border procedures for persons who are not eligible for global protection or who may pose a threat to security. In specified cases, accelerated return and deportation procedures are foreseen. In addition, the EU has prepared circumstantial crisis protocols for emergency situations specified as the massive influx of migrants or the instrumental usage of migration by 3rd countries [11].
The second pillar is fast and effective asylum procedures. The improvement envisages introducing more transparent rules specifying which EU country is liable for examining the asylum application. The fresh rules are intended to improve the full process and to reduce congestion on any associate States. At the same time, the request to respect the rights of applicants for global protection has been stressed by establishing minimum standards for the admission of migrants throughout the EU. The fresh regulations besides lay down uniform criteria for granting exile position and the rights and obligations of beneficiaries of global protection. The improvement is besides intended to prevent the abuse of the asylum strategy by requiring migrants to cooperate with state authorities and the legal consequences in the event of obstruction of procedures [12].
The 3rd pillar of the fresh pact is an effective strategy of solidarity and work between associate States. The EU has created a solidarity mechanics to guarantee a fairer sharing of work for migrants. associate States may decide how they will participate in the strategy themselves – through the relocation of migrants, financial support, operational assistance or the organisation of return procedures. The reforms besides supply greater support from the EU institutions and European funds to the countries most affected by migration. At the same time, the fresh rules are intended to limit secondary movements of migrants between EU countries. Applicants should stay in the country of first entry until their application has been examined [13].
The 4th pillar of migration policy is to mainstream migration into global partnerships. The European Union intends to increase cooperation with the countries of origin and transit of migrants in order to reduce illegal migration. Frontex plays a peculiar function in this area, which supports border protection and combating human trafficking. The EU is besides planning to make cooperation on readmission, which is the return of those who do not have the right to reside. At the same time, the Community wants to advance legal forms of migration through programmes specified as the EU talent pool and partnerships on education, work and training for third-country nationals [14].
Analysis of impacts and controversy
One of the most crucial affirmative effects of the improvement could be the improvement of asylum procedures and better coordination between associate States. Through common regulation and the improvement of systems for identifying migrants, the EU will be able to respond more rapidly to crisis situations and reduce illegal migration. Strengthening border protection and the greater function of Frontex can besides increase control over the flow of persons crossing the borders of the Union. The solidarity mechanism, which implies a fairer sharing of work between associate States, is besides positively assessed. Countries most susceptible to the influx of migrants, specified as Greece, Italy or Spain, are expected to receive greater financial and organisational support. The improvement can besides aid to reduce administrative chaos and reduce the number of illegal movements of migrants between EU countries [15].
Despite these assumptions, the fresh migration pact creates many controversy. 1 of the main problems is concerns about respect for human rights. Humanitarian organisations point out that accelerated border and deportation procedures may lead to restrictions on the right to a fair examination of asylum applications. An crucial part of this strategy is the thought of creating centres for refugees outside the EU. specified centres would be established in 3rd countries cooperating with the Union and would be utilized to process asylum applications even before the Community borders were exceeded. Supporters of this solution believe that it can reduce smuggling groups and reduce illegal border crossings. Critics, however, stress that the creation of specified centres may lead to violations of human rights, deterioration of the surviving conditions of migrants and the transfer of work for the problem of migration outside Europe [16].
The issue of solidarity between associate States is besides controversial. any countries of Central and east Europe are opposed to the mandatory relocation mechanisms of migrants, arguing that migration policy should stay within national competence. As a result, the improvement can deepen political divisions within the EU and make conflicts of work for migrants [17].
In addition, experts indicate that the improvement itself will not solve the main causes of migration, specified as wars, poorness or political instability in the countries of origin of migrants. Even more effective procedures and stronger borders can prove insufficient without wider global cooperation and humanitarian and improvement activities outside Europe [18].
[1] Single European Act, Europarl.europa.eu, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/about-parliament/en-the-past/the-parliament-and-the-treaties/single-european-act, accessed 21.05.2026.
[2] Schengen, the borderless zone, Consilium.europa.eu, https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policy/schengen-area/, accessed 21.05.2026.
[3] Treaty on European Union (TEU) — Maastricht Treaty, Europarl.europa.eu, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/about-parliament/en-the-past/the-parliament-and-the-treaties/maastricht-treaty, accessed 21.05.2026.
[4] Treaty of Amsterdam, Europarl.europa.eu, https://www.europarl.europa.eu/about-parliament/en-the-past/the-parliament-and-the-treaties/treaty-of-amsterdam, accessed 21.05.2026.
[5] The Hague Programme: strengthening freedom, safety and justice in the European Union, Wolters Kluwer, https://sip.lex.pl/actuals-legals/journals-EU/Haski programme-enhancement of freedom and justice-in-Union-67501574, accessed 21.05.2026.
[6] Directive 2008/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on common standards and procedures to be applied by associate States with respect to the return of illegally staying third-country nationals, EUR-Lex, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/PL/ALL/?uri=celex%3A32008L0115, accessed 21.05.2026.
[7] EU Blue Card, Commission.europa.eu, https://home-affairs.ec.europa.eu/policy/migration-and-asylum/eu-immigration-portal/eu-blue-card_en, accessed 21.05.2026.
[8] Stockholm Programme – An open and safe Europe for the benefit and protection of citizens, Wolters Kluwer, https://sip.lex.pl/actual/journals-EU/Stockholm programme-open-and-safe-europa-for-good-and-protection-67947756, accessed 21.05.2026.
[9] From open borders to isolation policy: Europe in the face of a fresh migration paradigm, BBC News Poland, https://www.bbc.com/polska/articles/ce86yk412g2o, accessed 21.05.2026.
[10] Pact on Migration and Asylum, Commission.europa.eu, https://home-affairs.ec.europa.eu/policy/migration-and-asylum/pact-migration-and-asylum_en, accessed 21.05.2026.
[11] Ibid.
[12] Ibid.
[13] Ibid.
[14] Ibid.
[15] Migration and asylum: associate States agree on a solidarity pool, Consilium.europa.eu, https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2025/12/08/migration-and-asylum-member-states-agree-on-solidarity-pool/, accessed 21.05.2026.
[16] The European Pact for Migration and Asylum represents a serious threat to EU rights and values, the Migration Consortium, https://konsortjum.org.pl/European-Pact-migration-and-azil-to-serious-risk-for-law-and-value-eu/, accessed 21.05.2026.
[17] Migration Pact: Controversy, challenges and possible solutions, Sawickiwspolnica.pl, https://sawickiwspolnicy.pl/pact-migration-controversy-and-potential-solutions/, accessed 21.05.2026.
[18] The European Pact for Migration and Asylum represents a serious threat to the rights and values of the EU, the Migration Consortium, https://konsortjum.org.pl/European-Pact-migration-and-azil-to-serious-risk-for-law-and-value-eu/, accessed 21.05.2026.
