Europe

Europe faces an interesting set of immigration challenges and opportunities: Demographic pressures as many European societies age, a lively and at times tense policy and political debate over questions of identity and immigrant integration, and a unique policy environment that has knit many European countries together with regards to free movement, the management of outer borders, asylum, and other immigration-related topics. MPI has long conducted research and analysis of European policy on topics ranging from labor mobility and border security to immigrant integration, citizenship, and foreign qualifications recognition, which can be found below.

Iraqi and Swedish families paired in Sweden's community sponsorship program

Policy Briefs

Supporting Self-Sufficiency: Considerations for Refugees’ Transition out of Sponsorship and Complementary Pathways Programs

As more countries launch refugee sponsorship and complementary pathways programs, planning for and supporting refugees’ transition out of these programs is essential. While often receiving less attention than other elements of program design, a clear transition plan can promote refugees’ self-sufficiency, social cohesion, and overall program sustainability. This MPI Europe issue brief explores common transition challenges as well as promising practices.

Image of female worker at the Boqueria market in Barcelona making a crepe

Commentaries

As Europe and the United States Face Similar Migration Challenges, Spain Can Act as a Bridge

Spain and the United States both receive their greatest number of immigrants from Latin America, and have worked collaboratively together on displacement crises and other migration issues. As shared immigration challenges dominate debate on both sides of the Atlantic, Spain can serve as a vital bridge in the policy conversation, this commentary notes.

Passengers wearing face masks at a UK airport

Reports

Coordination Breakdown: The Impacts of COVID-19 on Migration in Europe

The story of the COVID-19 pandemic in Europe is chiefly one of challenges to solidarity and coordination. Cross-border movement—even within Europe’s Schengen Area—ground to a halt, and countries took varied approaches to using travel measures in an attempt to slow the virus’s spread. This report explores the pandemic’s impacts on mobility to and within Europe, its challenges to European solidarity, and lessons for future public-health crises.

Recent Activity

Articles April 3, 2019 Foreign Fighters: Will Revoking Citizenship Mitigate the Threat? By Meghan Benton and Natalia Banulescu-Bogdan	Policy Briefs March 2019 Money Wise: Improving How EU Funds Support Migration and Integration Policy Objectives By Hanne Beirens and Aliyyah Ahad
Multimedia January 24, 2019 Social Innovation for Refugee Inclusion: A Sense of Home	Reports February 2019 Exploring New Legal Migration Pathways: Lessons from Pilot Projects By Kate Hooper
Multimedia January 25, 2019 Building the Foundations for Inclusion: What Does the Future Hold for Immigrant Integration in Europe?	Reports January 2019 Breaking New Ground: Ten Ideas to Revamp Integration Policy in Europe By Meghan Benton and Aliyyah Ahad
Reports January 2019 Communicating Strategically about Immigrant Integration: Policymaker Perspectives By Aliyyah Ahad and Natalia Banulescu-Bogdan	Commentaries January 2019 Too Little, Too Late? Contingency Planning for UK Nationals in Case of a No-Deal Brexit By Meghan Benton and Aliyyah Ahad

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Policy Briefs May 2013 Migration and Environmental Change: Assessing the Developing European Approach By Andrew Geddes and Will Somerville	Reports March 2013 Immigration and National Identity in Norway By Thomas Hylland Eriksen
Reports March 2013 The Integration Needs of Mobile EU Citizens: Impediments and Opportunities By Elizabeth Collett	Reports March 2013 Exceptional in Europe? Spain's Experience with Immigration and Integration By Joaquín Arango
Reports March 2013 Identity and (Muslim) Integration in Germany By Naika Foroutan	Reports March 2013 The Netherlands: From National Identity to Plural Identifications By Monique Kremer
Policy Briefs February 2013 Facing 2020: Developing a New European Agenda for Immigration and Asylum Policy By Elizabeth Collett	Reports February 2013 How Free Is Free Movement? Dynamics and Drivers of Mobility within the European Union By Meghan Benton and Milica Petrovic

Pages

Top Ten

December 10, 2013

Greece Confronts Golden Dawn As the Far Right Takes Aim at the European Union

The murder of an anti-fascist rapper in 2013 dealt a severe blow to Greece's extremist, virulently anti-immigrant political party Golden Dawn, whose popularity had been increasing (relatively unchecked) since 2010. The party, which rejects the neo-Nazi label that many have applied to it, provoked a national outcry in September after a party sympathizer confessed to killing Pavlos Fyssas.

Top Ten

December 10, 2013

Questions of Immigration Control Preoccupy Policymakers Worldwide as Mixed Flows of New Arrivals Continue, and in Some Cases, Surge

This year has seen greater focus by policymakers in countries around the world on the balance between two enduring, complex migration management imperatives: maintaining secure and credible borders while separating out unauthorized immigrants from the most vulnerable populations in need of humanitarian protection, particularly those seeking refuge from conflict and persecution.

Feature

September 4, 2013

Integrating Immigrant Youth: Transatlantic Perspectives

This article examines common challenges and factors influencing the development of local labor-market integration initiatives targeting immigrant youth, based on four city case studies conducted in the United States and the European Union.

Feature

June 28, 2013

Diasporas and Development in Post-Communist Eurasia

The region encompassing Central and Eastern Europe as well as the former Soviet Union is the source of a sizeable share of international migrants today, yet many of these countries' development efforts do not benefit from strong diaspora ties.

Feature

May 10, 2013

Integrating Europe's Muslim Minorities: Public Anxieties, Policy Responses

Muslim integration is one of the most contentious issues in the immigration debate in Europe, and one that gets to the heart of public anxieties about immigration. This article explores public perception toward Muslims in Western Europe and the array of integration policies that countries in the region have adopted during the past several years.

Recent Activity

Articles

December 20, 2022

‘Recalcitrant’ and ‘Uncooperative’: Why Some Countries Refuse to Accept Return of Their Deportees

Every year, thousands of migrants ordered deported from EU Member States, the United States, and elsewhere are not returned to their origin countries. Why? One reason is the multiple nations that refuse to cooperate on readmitting their nationals abroad. This article explores the motivations behind countries’ lack of cooperation and how deporting states have responded.

Expert Q&A, Audio

December 15, 2022

A Century of Climate Migration Upheaval? An Audacious Prediction for the Future

As the planet’s temperature warms, award-winning environmental journalist Gaia Vince thinks humanity is facing a chaotic century of mass migration spurred by climate change? In this episode of Changing Climate, Changing Migration, she contemplates a future in which hundreds of millions of people move from one part of the globe to another.

Video, Audio

December 13, 2022

The Ukrainian Displacement Crisis: A Conversation with the European Commission's Director General for Migration and Home Affairs

Monique Pariat, the European Commission’s Director General for Migration and Home Affairs, spoke to the DC policy community on Europe’s rapid response to the Ukrainian displacement crisis, lessons learned, and considerations for future policies.

Expert Q&A, Audio

December 8, 2022

The “Great Replacement” Theory and the Often-Toxic Stew of Immigration and Nationalism

Natalia Banulescu-Bogdan and researcher Justin Gest discuss the confluence of polarization, nationalism, and immigration, as well as how increasingly diverse societies come up with a new definition of "we".

Policy Briefs

November 2022

Reassessing Recruitment Costs in a Changing World of Labor Migration

Migrant workers can pay a range of costs when they are recruited and relocate for jobs abroad, accruing significant debt. While many countries, international organizations, and other stakeholders have sought to reduce or eliminate recruitment costs, the pandemic has exacerbated and added to these expenses. This policy brief explores how the costs migrant workers face have changed, and what these developments mean for efforts to promote fair and ethical recruitment.

Reports

November 2022

Financing Responses to Climate Migration: The Unique Role of Multilateral Development Banks

Multilateral development banks (MDBs) have emerged as major players in responding to climate change, investing in sustainable infrastructure and climate resilience. But while many MDBs have shown interest in projects with positive impacts for climate migrants and host communities, they sometimes struggle to maximize these effects. This report examines MDBs’ role in responding to climate-related migration and displacement to date and opportunities to scale up their work.

Articles

November 10, 2022

Millionaire Migration Rises and Heads to New Destinations

Migrant millionaires are once again on the move, though headed to new destinations amid fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. While wealthy new arrivals can help provide a healthy tax base and invest in local economies, they can upset housing markets and exacerbate wealth disparities, as this article describes.

Articles

November 2, 2022

Living in Limbo: Displaced Ukrainians in Poland

Poland hosts millions of Ukrainians who fled Russia’s invasion. While the new arrivals have tended to have been greeted warmly, many have questions about the future. As the months pass, many displaced Ukrainians wonder when and if they will return to their native country. This article, based on interviews with dozens of displaced Ukrainians in Poland, examines their experiences.

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