In her 2023 State of the Union address, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen called for strengthening all tools at the EU's disposal to effectively counter migrant smuggling, by updating the 20-year-old legislative framework, reinforcing the role of EU agencies, in particular Europol, as well as intensifying cooperation with partner countries to tackle this issue globally.

To follow up on this, the European Commission proposed today to upgrade its legislative framework, by laying down minimum rules to prevent and counter the facilitation of unauthorised entry, transit and stay in the EU and replacing Council Directive 2002/90/EC and Council Framework Decision 2002/946. The new rules aim to facilitate effective prosecution of organised criminal networks, to set harmonised penalties reflecting the seriousness of the offence, to extend jurisdictional reach, to reinforce Member States' resourcing and capacities and finally, to improve data collection and reporting.

The European Commission also proposed a Regulation to reinforce Europol's role and inter-agency cooperation in the fight against migrant smuggling and trafficking in human beings. To achieve this, Europol's financial and human resources would be increased.

The Commission's proposal for the legislation will now be negotiated by the European Parliament and the Council.

In addition, the European Commission launched a Call to Action for a Global Alliance to Counter Migrant Smuggling. Governments are called to strengthen efforts on prevention, to enhance the response to counter migrant smuggling and to address alternatives to irregular migration. International organisations are called upon to support the three working strands, inter alia, by promoting international cooperation and awareness among actors globally, including states, civil society, non-governmental and community-based organisations. Online service providers are called upon to work together with governments, international organisations and specialised law enforcement agencies to identify and take down online content that publicly instigates people to migrate irregularly or that promotes illicit activities related to the smuggling of migrants.

A technical Expert Group with representatives from EU institutions, agencies, Member States, partner countries, international organisations and other stakeholders will be convened. Regular stocktaking at the political level will be ensured, with the first event taking place in Copenhagen in the spring of 2024.

For further details, please read the press release from the European Commission.