This policy brief addresses increasing tensions and contradictions within return migration management in four strategically significant countries on the fringes of the European migration regime: Poland, Turkey, Morocco, and Greece. These countries are now focal areas of containment, being increasingly obliged to implement restrictive returns in compliance with EU externalization policies, securitization, and changing domestic pressures.
Read MoreThis policy brief synthesises findings from the Horizon Europe project GAPs, a three‑year interdisciplinary study (2023–2026) conducted in 11 countries by 17 partner institutions and more than 50 researchers. EU return governance is facing an enduring implementation gap: orders to leave remain high, while effective returns and sustainable reintegration outcomes remain limited. GAPs evidence indicates that addressing this gap cannot be achieved through “more enforcement” alone; it requires…
Read MoreThis policy brief draws on in-depth empirical and legal analysis carried out within the Horizon Europe GAPs project, particularly the Sweden country dossiers on legal and policy infrastructures of return (WP2) and return migration infrastructures (WP3). These studies systematically examine Sweden’s regulations, policies, institutions, and statistics on return and readmission, situating national developments within broader EU frameworks and Pact reforms. Building on this evidence base, the brief distils the most salient findings into a concise set of policy-relevant insights and reform recommendations on return governance.
Read MoreAre there alternatives to the permanent crisis mode of German migration policy, and what might they look like? This analysis seeks answers—and solutions—within the multi-level and multi-stakeholder infrastructure that implements migration and return policy in Germany. Drawing on empirical research, it traces its inherent and politically induced lines of conflict, which revolve around objectives and target groups, the legitimacy of means, the necessity of legal certainty, around…
Read MoreThis policy report analyses Türkiye’s “Go-and-See Visits” as a distinctive mechanism within the country’s evolving return-migration governance for Syrians under Temporary Protection. It relies on rounds of desk research and interviews conducted in Gaziantep and Hatay between January and June 2025. The fieldwork combined site-level observations with consultations involving NGOs, UN agencies, and other humanitarian stakeholders. The aim was to understand the changing humanitarian landscape, new implementations (such as “go-and-see visits” and…
Read MoreThis policy brief draws on research conducted within the Horizon project “GAPs – Decentring the Study of Migrant Returns and Readmission Policies in Europe and Beyond”. It presents key findings and policy recommendations concerning Greece’s three Return Migration Infrastructures (RMIs): forced returns, pushbacks, and the Assisted Voluntary Return and Reintegration (AVRR) program implemented by the IOM…
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