UN rights chief troubled by new EU migrant return rules

GENEVA: The UN rights chief said on Saturday he deeply regretted the European Union’s new migration rules, which allow much broader detention powers and the creation of deportation centres outside the bloc.

The rules, approved on Wednesday, enable the 27 EU nations to open “return hubs” outside the bloc’s borders, where they can send asylum seekers and migrants to whom they do not grant the right to remain.

Volker Turk, the United Nations’ High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the EU and its member states must ensure the rules fully comply with international human rights and refugee law.

“EU states cannot simply outsource their human rights obligations to third states in this context,” he said in a statement.

“Detention and return of vulnerable people, including children, to other countries is a particularly sensitive exercise of the state’s power and carries a high risk of human rights violations.

“There must be front-and-centre emphasis on human rights protection and dignity throughout — in fact and in law,” Turk insisted.

European governments have sought a tougher stance on immigration, which has become a hot political topic used by far-right parties to make electoral gains across the continent.

With asylum seeker arrivals down in 2025, the focus in Brussels has turned to tightening up the repatriation system.

‘Serious human rights violations’

Currently, fewer than 30% of people who are ordered to leave are returned to their country of origin.

“International human rights law and refugee law are very clear — no-one should be returned to a place where they would be at risk of serious human rights violations or other irreparable harm,” said Turk.

“This is the fundamental principle of non-refoulement. It must be fully respected by all countries and all territories under all circumstances.”

He also called for robust monitoring and accountability to ensure full respect for human rights in return procedures, including people’s right to private and family life, to family unity, as well as to protect the best interests of children.

“Deportation decisions must always be based on individualised assessments and should not be carried out prior to conclusion of appeal processes,” Turk insisted.

Besides return hubs, the new measures establish a strict obligation for migrants subject to expulsion to leave and cooperate with authorities to that end.

They say that those who do not, who pose a security risk or are thought to be at risk of absconding, can be detained for up to two years.

Turk urged countries to ensure that public discourse on migration “remains grounded in fact” and “avoids conflating migration with security concerns”.

Turk called for a balanced approach to migration anchored in human rights, that recognised “the contributions of migrants to European societies and economies”.