Commission ramps up deportation drive with new ‘safe third country’ proposal

The European Commission is moving to overhaul asylum procedures by relaxing the criteria for application of the ‘safe’ third country concept, according to a new proposal published today.

The Commission has proposed revising the concept of a "safe third country", effectively tightening asylum procedures, a move Euractiv first reported in February.

The "safe third country" concept lets Member States declare asylum claims inadmissible if the applicant could get protection in a non-EU country deemed safe. Right now, EU law requires a clear link between the asylum seeker and that country.

Under EU law, a third country qualifies as “safe” only if it offers protection from refoulement, poses no real risk of serious harm or persecution, and allows asylum seekers to request and obtain effective protection.

The new proposal could quietly rewrite the EU’s asylum rulebook.

Under the revised rules, EU countries could deport asylum seekers to countries they merely transited through – or even to places they’ve never set foot in  – as long as a bilateral agreement or informal arrangement exists.

The requirement for a prior mandatory connection between the asylum seeker and the safe third country would be dropped, leaving it up to national law to define what counts as a “connection.”

“Now, if an asylum seeker arrives in the EU and there is an agreement or arrangement in place with a safe third country that meets all conditions set in the asylum procedures regulation, that person could be transferred there and granted effective protection,” an EU official said.

Power to deport anyone?

In practice, this gives EU members sweeping leeway to deport almost anyone, provided procedural boxes are ticked.

Importantly, the third country isn’t required to accept the individual. However, there will be no EU-wide list of safe countries a Commission official confirmed. “Member states can define their own lists", the official added.

The changes are to be included in the new Asylum Procedures Regulation, part of the broader Pact of Migration and Asylum, which is due to come into force next year.

Under the proposal, member states must notify the Commission and other member states before sealing any deals with “safe” third countries, giving Brussels a chance to check whether those agreements actually meet EU legal standards.

On top of the proposed changes, the Commission is also moving to scrap the automatic right to remain during appeals. Under the new rules, appeals against inadmissibility decisions based on the safe third country concept would no longer automatically suspend deportation.

Part of bigger puzzle

The proposal is the latest in a series of moves by the Commission to tighten EU asylum rules.

In April, it adopted a plan to designate seven countries – Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, India, Kosovo, Morocco, and Tunisia – as “safe countries of origin,” paving the way for fast-tracked and more easily rejected asylum claims.

Just a month earlier, the Commission also signed off on new EU return rules aimed at streamlining rules for returning rejected asylum seekers, including legal provisions for countries to explore the use of so-called "return hubs".

However, the new amendments "will not affect plans by member states to pursue return hubs," said Susan Fratzke, senior policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute, in comments to Euractiv.

As Fratzke explained, return hubs are intended for individuals who have already had their asylum claims assessed and denied, and who are now subject to return procedures.

The new proposals will now head to the European Parliament and the Council for approval.

(aw)