Asylum, migration & borders

The rights of third-country nationals entering or staying in the EU are often not respected. This is sometimes because of insufficient implementation of legislation, poor knowledge of fundamental rights, or inadequately trained civil servants, and sometimes simply due to discrimination and xenophobia.

Some 20.5 million non-EU nationals were living in the EU in 2011, which represents about 4 percent of the entire population. To compare with this figure, 250,000 to 300,000 people on average apply for asylum in the EU each year. FRA collects data and information on the implementation of these people’s rights, identifying existing gaps as well as promising practices in the Member States. It then proposes ways of addressing shortfalls on the one hand, and making wider use of good practices on the other. Until now, the agency’s work has focused on fundamental rights at borders, the rights of migrants in an irregular situation, and asylum. In 2013, FRA will begin research on severe forms of labour exploitation, which is often closely connected to the violation of migrants’ and asylum seekers’ rights.

The EU has a set of rules and policies that cover visa, borders and asylum, counteract irregular migration and, to a lesser extent, concern the admission and integration of migrants. In addition, most rights enshrined in the EU’s Charter of Fundamental Rights apply to everyone, regardless of their migration status. The Charter contains the right to asylum, and prohibits collective expulsion and the removal of individuals if there is a risk to their life or of other serious harm.

See also: 
Practical guidance

Practical guidance

Based on its findings and research FRA provides practical guidance to support the implementation of fundamental rights in the EU Member States.

FRA provides practical guidance in the following area:

Apprehension of irregular migrants 

FRA has compiled a document providing practical guidance on the fundamental rights considerations of apprehending migrants in an irregular situation, drawing on input from stakeholders.

It includes do’s and don’ts for law enforcement officials. The findings were drawn up following two meetings with Member State experts, the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM) as well as the European Commission. It is part of FRA’s larger work on the fundamental rights of migrants in an irregular situation and follows suggestions made during the Fundamental Rights Conference 2011. The conference showcased FRA’s work on the rights of irregular migrants which revealed that certain practices to detect irregular migrants may disproportionately discourage them from accessing essential services, such as health, education and legal services.

This latest document, providing operational guidance on fundamental rights, has been handed over to relevant EU institutions for further consideration. It was presented to the Council Working Party on Integration, Migration and Expulsion on 26 September and on 28 September to the Contact Committee of EU Member State representatives, which is convened by the European Commission under the Return Directive. The Contact Committee meeting, which took place on 15 March, decided to include the guidance document in the minutes of the meeting. The aim of the minutes is to develop joint views on how the requirements set out in the Return Directive might be met.

The obligation under Article 6(1) of the Return Directive to issue a return decision to any third-country national staying illegally on their territory is subject to the principle of proportionality expressly recognised by the Return Directive. The minutes state that the legitimate aim of fighting illegal migration may be balanced against other legitimate State interests, such as general public health considerations, the interest of the State to fight crime, the interest to have comprehensive birth registration, respect for the best interest of the child as well as other relevant fundamental rights recognised by the EU Charter.

Downloads: 

Apprehension of migrants in an irregular situation – fundamental rights considerations

[pdf]en fr hu it nl (134.69 KB)

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19/04/2013

Exploitation of migrant workers is illegal and unacceptable

Severe labour exploitation of migrant workers is a reality, now, in Europe and in the twenty-first century. The extreme form this can take was tragically demonstrated this week, when migrant strawberry pickers in Greece were shot at by their employers for simply asking to be paid.

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March
2013

Fundamental rights at Europe’s southern sea borders

Report
This FRA report examines the conditions at Europe’s southern sea borders with respect to the most fundamental rights of a person, the right to life and the right not to be sent back to torture, persecution or inhuman treatment. It looks at sea border surveillance and disembarkation procedures, as well as training and Frontex-coordinated operations. It examines practices across the EU Member States researched – Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Malta and Spain.
November
2012

EU-MIDIS Data in Focus Report 6: Minorities as Victims of Crime

Data in focus
This EU-MIDIS Data in focus report 6 presents data on respondents’ experiences of victimisation across five crime types: theft of or from a vehicle; burglary or attempted burglary; theft of personal property not involving force or threat (personal theft); assault or threat; and serious harassment. The European Union Minorities and Discrimination Survey (EU-MIDIS) is the first EU-wide survey to ask 23,500 individuals with an ethnic and minority background about their experiences of discrimination and criminal victimisation in everyday life.
June
2012

Fundamental rights: challenges and achievements in 2011

Annual report
To secure and safeguard the fundamental rights of everyone in the European Union (EU), the EU and its 27 Member States pressed forward with a number of initiatives in 2011. This report chronicles the positive developments made in 2011 as well as the challenges facing the EU and its Member States in the field of fundamental rights.