Brussels, 2 October, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The European Union is moving towards a tougher common approach to removing people who have no legal right to remain in the bloc, with EU migrant return hubs now permitted under newly approved return rules and policymakers separately considering a broader operational role for Frontex.
The Council of the EU adopted the Common European System for Returns on 1 October. The legislation establishes common procedures for people ordered to leave EU territory and allows member states, under specified conditions, to establish return hubs in countries outside the bloc.
The development represents an important element of the EU’s wider effort to strengthen enforcement of migration decisions while maintaining safeguards required under European and international law.
How will EU migrant return hubs operate?
Under the new regulation, EU member states may conclude agreements or arrangements with third countries allowing people subject to return decisions to be transferred to hubs outside the European Union.
The Council says participating third countries must respect international human rights standards and comply with the principle of non-refoulement, which prohibits sending people to countries where they could face persecution or other serious harm.
Unaccompanied minors cannot be transferred to return hubs under the new framework.
The legislation also strengthens obligations on people subject to return procedures to cooperate with national authorities, while establishing more consistent procedures across member states.
Mutual recognition of return decisions will initially remain voluntary. The system is due to be reviewed after three years, when the European Commission could consider proposing mandatory recognition.
Why is Brussels changing its migration return system?
EU institutions have repeatedly identified the enforcement of return decisions as a weakness in the bloc’s migration system.
According to the European Commission’s 2026 State of Schengen Report, effective returns increased by 19% during 2025. Frontex supported approximately 63,500 returns that year, representing about 42% of the total.
The Commission separately reported that the EU’s overall return rate reached 28% in 2025.
The Council said when adopting the legislation that around two-thirds of people ordered to leave the European Union ultimately do not depart.
Improving enforcement has consequently become an increasingly important part of EU migration policy alongside border management and asylum reforms.
How could stronger Frontex powers change returns?
The new return regulation comes as Brussels examines whether the European Border and Coast Guard Agency should receive a broader mandate.
The Commission’s European Asylum and Migration Strategy says a planned revision of the Frontex Regulation will examine strengthening the agency’s role in returns both within and outside the European Union.
Possible changes include enabling Frontex to assist with returns from one non-EU country to another, although such operations would remain subject to legal requirements and fundamental-rights safeguards.
Migration Commissioner Magnus Brunner has also discussed strengthening the agency’s rapid-deployment capabilities and its role in returning people without permission to remain.
What safeguards remain under the new rules?
The tougher enforcement framework does not remove the EU’s obligations under asylum, human-rights and international law.
Authorities must continue to assess individual circumstances, while access to legal remedies and protections against collective expulsion remain relevant safeguards.
The conditions attached to EU migrant return hubs are particularly significant because cooperation with third countries has prompted scrutiny over how European legal protections can be maintained when return operations extend beyond EU territory.
What happens next for Frontex and EU migration policy?
Following formal Council approval, the return regulation will be published in the EU’s Official Journal. Provisions concerning return hubs are set to apply immediately after the regulation enters into force, while measures requiring additional administrative preparations will apply later.
Expanding Frontex’s mandate is a separate process. Any substantial new powers will depend on the Commission’s legislative proposal and subsequent negotiations involving the European Parliament and member states.
The combination of the new return framework and potential Frontex reforms means migration enforcement is set to remain a major legislative issue in Brussels as EU institutions determine how the new system will operate in practice.
