The European Commission has unveiled a new five-year migration policy that prioritizes deterrence, deportations, and cooperation with non-EU countries. Officials frame the plan as urgent and necessary, even though irregular arrivals fell sharply last year. However, rights groups warn that Europe’s reliance on external enforcement systems expose migrants to trafficking and exploitation.

“Europe decides who comes to Europe”

The Commission presented the plan amid sustained political pressure to appear tough on migration. EU leaders insist they need stronger measures, even though irregular arrivals dropped by more than 25% in 2025.

At the center of the policy is a blunt message: “Europe decides who comes to the EU.” In practice, the emphasis falls on prevention, faster removals, and stricter controls.

DW reports,

“The priority is clear: bringing illegal arrival numbers down and keeping them down,” said EU migration commissioner Magnus Brunner.

“Abuse gives migration a bad name — it undermines public trust and ultimately takes away from our ability to provide protection and undercuts our drive to attract talent,” Brunner said.

In its strategy statement, the European Commission said that “fast, effective and dignified return is indispensable to the well-functioning and the credibility of our migration and asylum system.”

This selective openness shapes the policy’s logic. Meaning, migrants are filtered by economic value. As enforcement expands, access to protection for the most vulnerable risks shrinking in practice.

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