E.g., 04/23/2024
E.g., 04/23/2024
European Union

European Union

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In the European Union, enlargement, special arrangements for the expansion of the Schengen Area, and the gradual development of a stronger EU role in immigration have added new complexity to the policy landscape, leading to both new patterns of movement and new policies for governing immigration from outside of the European Union's 27 Member States. The research offered here focuses on migration policies, trends, and common challenges that affect Europe at a supranational level—from free movement to asylum policy and the management of EU borders.

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Commentaries

One Phase Closes for the New Pact on Migration and Asylum. Now Another Begins

The New Pact on Migration and Asylum agreed in December 2023 by EU Member States and the European Parliament after lengthy negotiation will, without a doubt, go down in history as a signal political accomplishment. But will it result in better management of migration and asylum systems in a complex era? The outcome will turn on implementation and communication, this MPI Europe commentary explains.

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Policy Briefs

What Role Could Digital Technologies Play in the New EU Pact on Migration and Asylum?

With EU migration systems under strain, many observers have high hopes that the New Pact on Migration and Asylum will be able to help Europe address pressing challenges. This policy brief explores how digital technologies could support the implementation of the pact, should it be approved, as well as areas where caution is merited.

Recent Activity

Multimedia
September 14, 2021
How Will the Pandemic Reshape Public Health for Migrants?
Cover image for Taking the Long View: Options for Inclusive Post-Pandemic Labor Markets
Reports
August 2021
Taking the Long View: Options for Inclusive Post-Pandemic Labor Markets
By  Liam Patuzzi
Multimedia
August 24, 2021
Humanitarian Crisis in Afghanistan: How Could Europe Respond to Growing Displacement?
Women and children outside of home in Sohadat, Afghanistan
Commentaries
August 2021
The International Community Must Develop a Well-Coordinated Protection Strategy for Afghan Refugees
By  Hanne Beirens and Camille Le Coz
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Reports
July 2021
Future Scenarios for Global Mobility in the Shadow of Pandemic
By  Meghan Benton
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Commentaries
June 2021
Lessons from Europe: The U.S. Opportunity to Rethink the Links Between Development Assistance and Migration
By  Camille Le Coz and Ariel G. Ruiz Soto
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Commentaries
June 2021
Achieving the “Partnership” in the European Union’s Talent Partnerships
By  Kate Hooper
Flags of the European Union fly outside of the European Parliament in Brussels.
Articles
June 3, 2021
Borderless Europe: Seven Decades of Free Movement
By Saara Koikkalainen

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Taking Stock of Refugee Resettlement: Policy Objectives, Practical Tradeoffs, and the Evidence Base
Reports
May 2017
Taking Stock of Refugee Resettlement: Policy Objectives, Practical Tradeoffs, and the Evidence Base
By  Hanne Beirens and Susan Fratzke
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Reports
March 2017
Improving the Labour Market Integration of Migrants and Refugees: Empowering Cities through Better Use of EU Instruments
By  Kate Hooper, Maria Vincenza Desiderio and Brian Salant
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Reports
March 2017
Strengthening Local Education Systems for Newly Arrived Adults and Children: Empowering Cities through Better Use of EU Instruments
By  Brian Salant and Meghan Benton
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Reports
November 2016
Towards a Whole-of-Society Approach to Receiving and Settling Newcomers in Europe
By  Demetrios G. Papademetriou and Meghan Benton
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Reports
May 2016
Engaging the Anxious Middle on Immigration Reform: Evidence from the UK Debate
By  Sunder Katwala and Will Somerville
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Reports
March 2016
The Canadian Expression of Interest System: A Model to Manage Skilled Migration to the European Union?
By  Maria Vincenza Desiderio and Kate Hooper
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Reports
February 2016
Getting the Balance Right: Strengthening Asylum Reception Capacity at National and EU Levels
By  Michael Kegels
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Reports
December 2015
Welcoming Engagement: How Private Sponsorship Can Strengthen Refugee Resettlement in the European Union
By  Judith Kumin

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Feature
August 17, 2017
Outsourcing Migration Management: The Role of the Western Balkans in the European Refugee Crisis

Hundreds of thousands of migrants and asylum seekers reached Europe via the Western Balkans route during the peak of the migration crisis. While Balkan countries initially facilitated movements northward, pressure from the European Union led to cascading border controls, which left thousands stranded in the region. This article examines the role of Balkan countries during the thick of the crisis and subsequent regional impacts.

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Top Ten
December 20, 2016
Dawn of New Migration Reality Brings Focus on Borders, Returns, and Integration

As Europe begins to move beyond the overwhelming flows of asylum seekers and other migrants it experienced starting in 2015, policymakers are paying significant focus to integration coupled with stepped-up enforcement. 2016 saw a wave of policy innovations facilitating integration as well as returns and deterrence, but it remains to be seen whether Europe will be able to continue and scale up this work in 2017 and beyond, as this Top 10 article explores.

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Top Ten
December 15, 2016
European Project Dealt a Blow with Brexit Vote and Challenges to Migration Management

The United Kingdom's stunning decision to leave the European Union in June 2016, intertwined with rising concerns over migration, marked a significant setback to key objectives of the European project, including the right to free movement. Amid growing euroskepticism across the continent, it remains to be seen if the European Union will be able to reassert leadership to address migration and other issues in 2017 and beyond.

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Top Ten
December 13, 2016
As Publics Fear Loss of National Identity, Far-Right Populist Movements Gain Strength

The success of populist movements on both sides of the Atlantic in 2016, including Donald Trump's victory in the United States and the United Kingdom's vote to quit the European Union, have sparked an identity crisis in the West. Campaigns effectively tapped into the anxieties of voters who feel left behind by societal change and out-of-touch elites, while normalizing anti-immigrant rhetoric in mainstream discourse, as this Top 10 article explores.

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Feature
June 22, 2016
Asylum Seeker and Migrant Flows in the Mediterranean Adapt Rapidly to Changing Conditions

Movements of migrants and asylum seekers in the Mediterranean have shown to be highly fluid, adapting quickly to changing conditions at origin, transit, and destination. This article examines the shifts in flows across the three major Mediterranean routes since 2008 and the complex web of often interconnected factors underpinning these movements.

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Video, Audio
February 17, 2016

Europe’s Migration Crisis: A Status Report and the Way Forward

MPI's Demetrios Papademetriou discusses the current policy responses to the refugee and migration crisis at EU and national levels, and possible options for dealing more effectively with the crisis and longer-term integration challenges.

A local volunteer in Spain watches the children in a sponsored refugee family as they play.
Audio
February 8, 2016

Scaling Up Resettlement: The Role of Private Sponsorship Programmes in Addressing the Refugee Crisis

Analysts discuss how private sponsorship programs for refugees, used by Canada and a handful of other countries, could alleviate some of the pressure from the European refugee crisis by allowing individuals, groups, businesses, and other entities to sponsor individual refugees for resettlement.

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Video, Audio
October 22, 2015

Serving Newcomer Immigrant and Refugee Students in Secondary Schools: Comparing U.S. and European Practices

This webinar examines the challenges facing educators and policymakers in Europe and the United States as they attempt to meet the needs of immigrant and refugee students who arrive during their middle and high school years.

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Video, Audio
October 20, 2015

What's Next for the European Asylum Crisis?

An MPI Europe video chat with the outgoing head of the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) on the current EU refugee crisis, what strategies Europe ought to be pursuing in response, and the growing role of EASO as well as its track record over its first five years.

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Audio
September 18, 2015

Simply No Consensus: Can The EU Respond to Continued Refugee Flows?

A webinar/call with senior officials from two EU Member States, Austria and Slovenia, to discuss their differing perspectives on the current refugee crisis, and consider what is needed to ensure a unified, practically feasible response to the biggest crisis that has faced the Common European Asylum System since its inception.

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Recent Activity

Policy Briefs
February 2021

COVID-19 and the Demand for Labor and Skills in Europe: Early Evidence and Implications for Migration Policy

While the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on European labor markets have focused attention on weathering this crisis, Europe also faces longer-term challenges linked to technological and demographic changes. This issue brief examines how the pandemic is reshaping demand for workers and skills in Europe, what this means for migration policy, and strategies for tackling both short- and long-term labor market challenges.

Video, Audio
February 5, 2021

A Way Forward on Migration Under the Portuguese Presidency of the European Union?

With Portugal assuming the EU Presidency in January 2021 and prioritizing progress on the EU Migration and Asylum Pact, this webinar features senior officials from the European Union, Germany (the last holder of the presidency), and Portugal to take stock of where conversations on the pact stand and Portugal’s plans for taking forward the negotiations. 

Articles
January 7, 2021

Faith and Mental Health Help Shape the Integration of Muslim Refugees in Germany

Faith plays a significant role in the mental health and social integration of refugees and asylum seekers. Yet in Germany, concerns about Islam and migrants from Muslim-majority countries have complicated social cohesion efforts, particularly in the wake of the 2015-16 refugee and migration crisis.

Reports
November 2020

The Next Generation of Refugee Resettlement in Europe: Ambitions for the Future and How to Realize Them

In recent years, the European Union and some of its Member States have taken on a greater role in global refugee resettlement, expanding or launching new programs and experimenting with creative approaches to providing protection to those in need. This report looks ahead to how these efforts, investments, and lessons learned can be built upon, even in the face of the uncertainty brought by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Video, Audio, Webinars
November 18, 2020

Welfare States and Migration: How Will the Pandemic Reshape a Complex Relationship?

This MPI Europe webinar reflects on the implications of this current moment for European economies and societies and the role of immigration and immigrant integration policy, and highlight research from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre on the fiscal and demographic impacts of migration.

Reports
November 2020

Building Welcome from the Ground up: European Small and Rural Communities Engaging in Refugee Resettlement

Small towns and rural areas within Europe have become more active in receiving resettled refugees in recent years. How is resettlement to these communities different compared to urban areas? And what can be done to make good on the promise of “rural welcoming”? This report explores these questions, drawing on interviews with resettled refugees and receiving-community members in Belgium, Italy, the Netherlands, and Sweden.

Reports
November 2020

Managing the Pandemic and Its Aftermath: Economies, Jobs, and International Migration in the Age of COVID-19

Around the world, governments are grappling with how to combat the COVID-19 pandemic while also managing the economic fallout of policies put in place to stop the virus’ spread. Global migration has dropped sharply amid border closures and travel restrictions. This reflection takes stock of policy responses to the pandemic thus far, and of the challenges (and some opportunities) on the horizon for migration systems, labor markets, and integration of newcomers.

Video, Audio, Webinars
October 22, 2020

COVID-19, the Withdrawal Agreement and Citizens' Rights: No Time to Waste

This webinar explores how governments’ implementation plans for the Brexit withdrawal agreement have been affected by COVID-19, and the potential implications for citizens’ rights at the end of the transition period and beyond. Among the topics covered: which mobile populations are most at risk at the intersection between Brexit and the pandemic, and what contingency measures might mitigate these vulnerabilities and keep timelines on track.

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