Migration is a complex global issue that needs to be handled humanely, fairly and with great sensitivity.
Europe needs migrants to tackle its demographic decline, but irregular migration leads to exploitation, human trafficking and loss of life through drowning, starvation, violence, medical neglect and dangerous travel conditions.
Europe’s refugee crisis in 2015-2016 exposed flaws in the EU’s migration system, while Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which displaced millions, shows just how quickly a humanitarian crisis can develop.
Migration has become a major topic of public debate in Ireland. The large influx of refugees from Ukraine since 2022, combined with a long-standing shortage of emergency accommodation for asylum seekers, has raised concerns.
The root causes of irregular migration can’t be solved by Ireland alone and the Irish Government has opted in to the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, which will tackle this global challenge in solidarity with other Member States.
The Pact aims to establish a practical and compassionate European migration strategy that safeguards vulnerable individuals while also attracting skilled migrants to support Europe’s sustainable development.
Pact on Migration and Asylum
During the refugee crisis of 2015-2016, Member States on the EU’s external borders struggled to manage large migrant flows. Coordination across Europe was weak, leaving many asylum seekers in poor conditions for long periods, with some moving to other countries before their claims were processed.
Irregular migration causes confusion that can result in the exploitation of migrants by criminal groups, and the manipulation of local populations by political extremists.
The Pact on Migration and Asylum aims to establish swift, reliable management systems that protect vulnerable migrants, especially families and unaccompanied children.
It will strengthen borders, modernise the EU’s asylum system and enhance cooperation with partner countries to tackle the root causes of irregular migration. The Pact also opens legal paths for skilled migrants to help fill labour shortages across the EU.
“We must also ensure that we fully implement the Pact on Migration and Asylum as soon as it enters into force. The pact is strict but fair. And it will only work if everyone plays their part.”
Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission President, 2025 State of the Union address.
The Pact reforms the Common European Asylum System (CEAS), set up in 1999 to harmonise asylum and migration rules. While all Member States participated in the CEAS, it lacked full political backing and consistent implementation, especially during high migration period.
A central weakness was the Dublin Regulation, introduced in 1990 to prevent multiple asylum claims but which placed most responsibility on a few border countries. The new Asylum and Migration Management Regulation (AMMR) replaces the Dublin Regulation and introduces a mandatory solidarity system. This ensures all Member States share responsibility by hosting asylum seekers, providing financial contributions, or sending operational support.
Adopted by the European Parliament and Council in spring 2024, the Pact entered into force on 11 June 2024, with its main provisions set to apply from 12 June 2026.
Benefits of the Pact on Migration and Asylum include:
- Better managed borders: More efficient and coordinated control of the EU's borders.
- Stronger trust: Common, fast procedures will promote cooperation among Member States.
- Effective solidarity: Member States facing a crisis situation will receive targeted support from other Member States and the EU.
- Legal pathways: Expanding opportunities for lawful migration will attract labour talent and reduce irregular movements.
- International partnerships: Developing partnerships with key countries will help stem irregular migrant flows.
- Flexibility and resilience: New instruments will enable faster, more coordinated EU action during future migration emergencies.
Pact on Migration and Asylum Q&A
Explanatory memo on the Pact on Migration and Asylum
Actions on asylum and migration
Implementation of the Pact on Migration and Asylum is progressing but measures are already in place to ease migratory pressures and protect those seeking refuge.
A renewed EU Action Plan against Migrant Smuggling targets criminal networks that exploit vulnerable people, while an EU Strategy on Voluntary Return and Reintegration supports migrants who have no legal right to stay in the EU to return home safely and with dignity.
EU border management organisation, Frontex, has been transformed into a strengthened European Border and Coast Guard Agency, providing operational support to Member States and helping ensure effective management of the EU’s external borders.
To support legal migration, the Commission’s Skills and Talent Mobility Package includes an EU Talent Pool to connect employers with jobseekers from outside the EU in sectors facing labour shortages. The Blue Card Directive makes it easier for highly qualified workers and employers to match skills with opportunities across Europe. New measures supporting the Pact on Migration and Asylum includes:
- Eurodac Regulation: Updated fingerprint and biometric rules will apply from 12 June 2026, improving identification of asylum seekers and irregular border-crossers.
- Screening Regulation: Now in force across the Schengen Area, it introduces uniform health, security and identity checks at borders. Ireland is not bound by this regulation but will carry out comparable screening at its own border
- Common European System for Returns: Proposed by the Commission to make return procedures swifter, simpler and fairer for people with no legal right to remain in the EU.
- Asylum Procedure Regulation: Overhauled to establish a single, faster process with clear deadlines, including border procedures for certain cases. Ireland is preparing to apply this regulation.
- Crisis and Force Majeure Regulation: Effective June 2026, it enables Member States to adapt migration rules and request EU assistance during sudden inflows.
- Revised Anti-Trafficking Directive: Adopted in June 2024, it strengthens prevention, prosecution and victim protection measures across the EU.
- Advance Passenger Information (API) Regulations: Introduce a standardised EU system for collecting passenger data to enhance border security.
- Digital Entry/Exit System (EES): Introduced in October 2025 across 29 Schengen countries, it replaces passport stamps with biometric checks for non-EU travellers to improve border management. While Ireland is not part of Schengen, it benefits indirectly through enhanced security and better monitoring of migration trends.
Frontex (European Border and Coast Guard Agency)
Solidarity with Ukraine
Solidarity and shared responsibility are central to the EU’s approach to migration and asylum. This unity enabled the European Commission to act swiftly when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 forced millions of people to flee their homes.
A Solidarity Platform was set up to coordinate humanitarian efforts, allowing the transfer of Ukrainians to countries with available reception capacity and ensuring that support was distributed fairly across the Union. Financial assistance for Member States hosting people from Ukraine was quickly mobilised and the EU Temporary Protection Directive (TPD) was activated for the first time.
Under the TPD, people fleeing the war are entitled to residence, housing, healthcare, education and access to work in the EU until at least 4 March 2027. In Ireland, beneficiaries are offered short-term accommodation and a modest weekly allowance to cover daily expenses, with continued support available through local authorities and community services if required.
According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO), around 114,000 people from Ukraine have been granted temporary protection in Ireland, with approximately 80,000 currently active based on recent administrative data.
To help meet the costs of reception and integration, Member States can redirect resources from EU Cohesion Policy funds and the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD). The Commission has also paid over €3.5 billion in advance payments to Member States under REACT-EU, including €53 million allocated to Ireland.
Tackling root causes
Conflict, poverty, human rights abuses, political instability, and climate change drive irregular migration. Addressing these root causes is central to the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum. The EU, as the world’s leading humanitarian donor, is working with partner countries to provide aid and create safer migration routes for refugees. Its approach is grounded in respect for human rights and international protection standards.
One of these partnerships is with Türkiye, which hosts over three million refugees, mostly Syrians. Since 2011, the EU has provided nearly €10 billion in aid to support refugees and local communities, helping reduce irregular border crossings between Türkiye and Greece. The EU also has partnerships with Tunisia, Egypt, and Mauritania focused on economic cooperation, migration management, and security.
Separately, the EU has developed four Action Plans that cover migration routes across the Mediterranean, the Balkans, and the Atlantic. These Action Plans bring together the EU, partner countries, and international organisations to prevent irregular departures, fight smuggling, and offer legal asylum pathways. The new Pact for the Mediterranean, launched in October 2025, provides a broader framework to strengthen cooperation with Southern Mediterranean countries by improving migration management, security, and economic opportunities.
Together, these efforts aim to stop irregular migration, fight smuggling, and create safe, legal ways for people to seek protection. The EU further supports education, job creation and climate resilience in partner countries through initiatives such as Global Gateway and NDICI–Global Europe, helping to make migration a choice rather than a necessity.
In addition, the Commission has launched a Global Alliance to Counter Migrant Smuggling with over 80 partner countries.
EU Humanitarian aid to Türkiye
Ireland's role
Ireland, with its own rich history of migration, has generally supported European Union policies on refugees and asylum seekers while balancing its unique geographic and legal context, including the Common Travel Area with the UK.
During the 2015-2016 refugee crisis, Irish Defence Forces took part in humanitarian rescue missions in the Mediterranean, saving over 10,000 migrants from dangerous situations at sea and apprehending suspected smugglers. More recently, Ireland remains committed to combating migrant smuggling through cooperation with EU agencies and regional partners, including participation in operations targeting trafficking networks and increased intelligence sharing to prevent illegal crossings.
Under the Treaty of Lisbon, Ireland is not automatically bound by EU measures in the areas of freedom, security and justice. Instead, it may decide on a case-by-case basis whether to opt in to individual proposals. Once a proposal is published, Ireland has three months to confirm participation. If it chooses not to opt in, discussions proceed without its involvement, and any resulting legislation does not apply in Ireland.
Ireland has a strong record of humanitarian engagement. Through the Irish Refugee Protection Programme (IRPP), it has participated in EU relocation and resettlement schemes, offering protection to refugees, mainly from Syria and Afghanistan, and continues to support their integration into Irish communities.
Ireland has decided to opt-in to the Pact on Migration and Asylum and a National Implementation Plan (NIP) was approved in March 2025. The NIP outlines Ireland’s roadmap for reforming its asylum laws and systems in line with the Pact.
Ireland will benefit from €66.9 million of EU funding to help manage migration from 2021 to 2027. The funding is made up of €45.1 million from the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF) and €21.8 million from the Internal Security Fund (ISF). The AMIF supports Member States in managing migration flows while funding under the ISF supports efforts to protect the security of citizens and manage the EU’s external borders.
In October 2025, Ireland announced a new partnership with the European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) to help manage asylum appeal cases. The EUAA will provide expert support to speed up decisions and assist with research and language interpretation.
Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund
Facts to consider
- The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Global Trends report 2024 found 123.2 million forcibly displaced people worldwide due to persecution, conflict, and other crises.
- The European Migration Network reported a 13% decrease in first-time asylum applications across the EU and Norway in 2024, with Syria, Venezuela, and Afghanistan as top countries of origin.
- In 2024, Frontex recorded 239,000 irregular border crossings, 25% less than 2023, with numbers continuing to decline in early 2025.
- Eurostat reported over 83,000 trafficking victims registered in the EU between 2013-2023. Trafficking for sexual exploitation remains most common, but labour exploitation cases surged over 70% since 2019.
Latest news on migration
The European Commission has presented ProtectEU, which sets out the objectives and actions for the next years to ensure a safer and more secure Europe.
The European Commission is proposing to establish a Common European System for Returns with swifter, simpler and more effective return procedures across the EU.
The European Commission is providing tailored support and expert advice to help Ireland and 8 other Member States to prepare their National Implementation Plans for the Pact on Migration and Asylum.
The European Commission welcomes Ireland's decision to opt-in to seven legal acts under the Pact on Migration and Asylum, as notified on 27 June 2024.
The European Commission has adopted a Common Implementation Plan for the Pact on Migration and Asylum that sets out the key milestones for all Member States to put in place the legal and operational capabilities required to successfully start applying the new legislation by mid-2026.
The European Commission has welcomed the result of today’s vote in the European Parliament, endorsing the political agreement on the Pact on Migration and Asylum.
The political agreement reached today by the European Parliament and the Council on the Pact on Migration and Asylum constitutes a major breakthrough towards a common system for managing migration in the EU.
The European Commission has proposed new legislation to prevent and fight migrant smuggling. The Commission has also launched a Call to Action for a Global Alliance to Counter Migrant Smuggling, at the International Conference hosted in Brussels on 28 November.
The European Commission has outlined the actions being taken to support Member States in meeting the needs of those fleeing the war against Ukraine and its people.
The site contains information about crossing the border, rights on arrival and information about onward travel in Ukrainian and English
European solidarity in action is helping people fleeing war in Ukraine through direct humanitarian aid, emergency civil protection assistance, support at the border, as well as a clear legal status allowing them to receive immediate protection in the EU.
The European Commission has proposed measures to prevent and restrict the activities of transport operators that engage in or facilitate smuggling or trafficking of people into the EU.
New 5-year strategies to boost cooperation across the EU in the fight against organised crime and human trafficking