EU return hubs: what are they, and how will they change the rights of migrants and asylum seekers?

The EU is in the process of creating a new system that will make it easier to return irregularly present migrants to their country of origin. The legislation, known as the Returns Regulation, includes measures that make it possible to detain more people – including children and families – for longer periods of time. This marks a major shift in European migration policy, as until now EU Member States could only detain irregularly present migrants as a last resort under specific circumstances. Not all States even had detention policies, and where they did, detention centres were almost always within the EU. This meant legal safeguards could be closely monitored. However, a recent vote has paved the way for the new Regulation to create “return hubs” in third countries outside the EU. The European Commission presents these offshore detention centres as an “innovative solution” to migration management, with assurances that they will ensure “fundamental rights”. In practice, it will be very difficult to monitor potential human rights violations and enforce European standards in return hubs outside Europe. The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe Michael O’Flaherty has warned that they could run the risk of creating “human rights black holes”. The Returns Regulation was proposed by the European Commission in March 2025. Its general approach was agreed by the Council of Ministers in December 2025, and it was endorsed by the European Parliament on March 26. The legislative process is now entering the last stages of negotiations. It is expected that the Returns Regulation, including the legal provisions for return hubs, will be adopted before the summer to replace the 2008 Returns Directive. What’s in the proposal? Attempts to establish return hubs date back to the 1980s, though none were successful. One of the most prominent was the UK’s 2003 proposal to the European Council to establish regional centres for the management of irregular migration. It was heavily criticised and did not obtain support among the other 13 EU Member States at the time. More recently, in 2024, Italy established migrant detention centres in Albania. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has cited the centres as a model for EU-wide migration management. The recently approved draft of the Returns Regulation allows for return hubs to be set up in third countries with whom the EU has made an agreement. Such agreements can only be concluded with a designated “third country” where international human rights law is respected. This includes the principle of non-refoulement, which prevents individuals from being sent to territories where their life or physical integrity are at risk. However, my own research argues that for a third country agreement to be fully in compliance with States’ obligations under the 1951 UN Refugee Convention, it must always guarantee the full range of refugee rights. These include the right to asylum, as well as socio-economic rights guaranteed by the Refugee Convention. It also means providing access to public education, employment, housing, social security, and courts. None of these rights are explicitly guaranteed in the draft Returns Regulation. Sending refugees to countries outside the EU runs the risk that refugees may never be granted the full range of rights that they are entitled to under the Refugee Convention. Read more: ‘We have to regularise them’: Europe’s deportation-first border policy, as told by the judges and police who enforce it How the law makes return hubs possible Return hubs are made possible by the combined effect of the new Returns Regulation and other instruments in the 2024 Pact on Migration and Asylum. In particular, the “safe third country” concept in the 2024 Asylum Procedures Regulation has been expanded by a new Regulation, which was adopted in February 2026. This concept allows Member States to reject asylum applications outright, without examining the merits of the claim, on the basis that the applicant would be safe from danger or persecution in a “safe third country” outside the EU. These are countries that have an agreement with the EU (or with its Member States), in which they commit to examine asylum applications made by individuals rejected by the EU. However, even when an applicant does not meet the criteria to be considered a refugee or a person otherwise in need of international protection, international human rights law may still impose obligations of non-return on EU Member States. While individuals have the right to appeal the decision that a country is “safe” for them, the new Regulation means they may not have the right to stay in the territory of the Member State concerned while the court examines that appeal. By sending applicants abroad to non-EU countries, the new rules could make it all but impossible to exercise EU-guaranteed rights. This includes the right to asylum and the right to an effective remedy, which expressly encompasses the possibility of being advised, defended and represented in court. Read more: Refugee families are more likely to become self-reliant if provided with support outside of camp settings What will the new law mean for migrants? The system designed by the EU will result in both individuals and families with children being deported to countries where they have no links. They will be subject to detention outside the EU, under conditions that will be difficult to monitor. Children are of particular concern. The EU’s own data shows that thousands of minors, including those travelling with families, go missing after arriving in Europe. Many are feared to be exploited and abused for sexual or labour purposes. If these issues arise within Europe’s borders – where immigration detention is governed by rule of law standards developed by the European Court of Human Rights and the Court of Justice of the EU – they will undoubtedly be much harder to monitor outside the EU. With this new system, Europe is departing from its historical role in championing and establishing the international regime for the protection of human rights in the early 20th century. As the world sees more victims of conflict, human rights violations and persecution than ever before, such a regime is now more necessary than ever. A weekly e-mail in English featuring expertise from scholars and researchers. It provides an introduction to the diversity of research coming out of the continent and considers some of the key issues facing European countries. Get the newsletter!