15 November 2023
The Commission is today presenting a Skills and Talent Mobility package to make the EU more attractive to talent from outside the EU and to facilitate mobility within it. Today's measures include a new EU Talent Pool to match employers in the EU with jobseekers in third countries, as well as measures to promote the recognition of qualifications and learner's mobility.
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Main Theme: Economic migration
Keywords: EU Talent Pool, talent partnership, skills recognition, mobility
14 November 2023
The European Migration Network (EMN) Glossary is an essential resource, which offers an EU-wide multidisciplinary vocabulary of approximately 500 terms and concepts related to asylum and migration. Let's focus today on the term "labour shortage" to make sure we have a common understanding and use of the term!
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Main Theme: Economic migration
Keywords: labour shortage, labour market access
08 November 2023
The Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration discussed today with mayors and aldermen of the five major cities of Antwerp, Brussels, Ghent, Charleroi and Liège to find ways to reduce the administrative burden in the field of asylum and migration, to guide illegally staying third-country nationals towards return and to implement social initiatives promoting, among others, the employment of applicants for international protection.
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Main Theme: Cross-sectional
Keywords: cities, administrative burden, proactive return policy, labour market access
08 November 2023
Nicole de Moor presented today a draft law which aims, in accordance with the federal government agreement, to enshrine in law a proactive return policy. The draft law inter alia provides for the obligation to cooperate in the return procedure and for the intensive individual follow up of third-country nationals who have received an order to leave the territory.
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07 November 2023
Samusocial, CIRÉ, Médecins du Monde, Ilot and the Brussels Platform Armoede have launched the campaign "Without papers, without rights, without shelter" to demonstrate the reality of undocumented persons and to propose concrete recommendations to policymakers in this field.
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Main Theme: Vulnerable groups
Keywords: homeless, undocumented migrants, access to employment, access to healthcare, gender
02 November 2023
The Flemish Bar Association obtained in court that the Immigration Office provide lawyers with a detailed organisation chart allowing them to enter directly into contact with the employees handling the cases they are defending.
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Main Theme: Migration
Keywords: transparency, Immigration Office
02 November 2023
The campaign aims to raise awareness among people in Guinea of the dangers of irregular migration, such as the risk of exploitation and dangerous crossings. People are also made aware of local employment opportunities and legal migration channels.
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Main Theme: Irregular Migration
Keywords: prevention campaign, awareness campaign, Guinea
30 October 2023
The World Health Organization has published its first-ever global research agenda on health, migration and displacement to guide research efforts to understand and address the health needs of migrants, refugees, and all forcibly displaced populations and shape responsive policies and practices worldwide.
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Main Theme: Vulnerable groups
Keywords: health, health emergency, migrant health
25 October 2023
The 2023 Innovation Awards were awarded at the IOM Global Chiefs of Missions Meeting (GCOMM) in Istanbul on 25 October 2023. In the category "Regular Pathways", Displaced Talent for Europe (DT4E), which facilitates skilled migration for displaced talent to respond to labour market shortages, was acknowledged as the changemaker.
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Main Theme: Economic migration
Keywords: regular pathway, skilled migrants, displaced person, labour market shortage
23 October 2023
The International Migration Outlook 2023, published today by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), highlights inter alia that permanent-type migration to OECD countries increased by 26% in 2022 compared with 2021. In Belgium and in many OECD countries, permanent-type migration was higher in 2022 than in any of the previous 15 years.
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Main Theme: Data & Statistics
Keywords: international migration trend, labour market integration, permanent migration
20 October 2023
The Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons (CGVS) announced on 20 October 2023 that the notification of decisions granting or refusing subsidiary protection status to applicants from Gaza and the West Bank is suspended until the CGRS has sufficient objective information to assess the security situation in the Palestinian territories accurately.
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Main Theme: International Protection
Keywords: Gaza, West Bank, refugee status, subsidiary protection status
19 October 2023
Home Affairs Ministers met at the JHA Council in Brussels on 19 October. They discussed progress on the New Pact on Migration and Asylum and exchanged views on the EU’s approach to the external dimension of migration. They stressed that the EU should efficiently use all the tools at its disposal to develop a preventive model which would hinder irregular departures, as well as to foster the effectiveness of returns.
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Main Theme: Cross-sectional
Keywords: Justice and Home Affairs Council, New Pact on Migration and Asylum, external dimension, return policy
18 October 2023
For the EU Anti-Trafficking Day, the European Commission is launching an awareness-raising campaign to inform citizens on the reality of this crime. The European Commission invites every citizen to help raise awareness by becoming part of the ‘End human trafficking. Break the invisible chain’ campaign.
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Main Theme: Smuggling & Trafficking
Keywords: anti-trafficking day, awareness campaign
18 October 2023
After the terrorist attack perpetrated by an illegally staying failed asylum seeker in the centre of Brussels on 16 October, various policymakers plead for better follow-up of failed asylum seekers and stricter enforcement of orders to leave the territory.
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18 October 2023
The European Council invited the Commission to present an Action Plan on the Eastern Mediterranean route, as part of a broader approach to help alleviate the pressure on Member States faced with large numbers of irregular arrivals along the route. This Action Plan identifies operational measures that will contribute to addressing the ongoing challenges along this route.
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Main Theme: Cross-sectional
Keywords: EU Action Plan for the Eastern Mediterranean route
16 October 2023
Fencing work has started today along the Westkerke and Mannekensvere highway car parks on the E40 to prevent transmigrants from crossing the highway to climb into lorries aiming to reach the UK.
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Main Theme: Irregular Migration
Keywords: transmigration, transmigrant, transit migrant
11 October 2023
The EMN Steering Board has voted on the topics which will be analysed in studies and informs in 2024. In line with the targets outlined in the 2023-2025 work programme of the EMN, 3 new studies and 10 new informs will be published next year.
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Main Theme: Cross-sectional
10 October 2023
In a new state of play published today, the European Commission reviews the state of affairs regarding progress on the New Pact on Migration and Asylum. Key developments since the last state of play from April 2023 are highlighted.
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Main Theme: Cross-sectional
Keywords: New Pact on Migration and Asylum
09 October 2023
The federal government has reached an agreement today on the 2024 budget. While 1.2 billion euros will improve the budget balance, 500 million euros will cover additional needs, including in the asylum and migration field.
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Main Theme: Reception
Keywords: federal budget, reception crisis
06 October 2023
Eurostat published today data referring to the attribution of temporary protection status based on the Council Implementing Decision 2022/382 of 4 March 2022. On 31 August 2023, almost 4.2 million non-EU citizens, who fled Ukraine as a consequence of the Russian invasion on 24 February 2022, had temporary protection status in EU countries.
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Main Theme: Asylum
Keywords: temporary protection, Ukraine
06 October 2023
The European Migration Network (EMN) Glossary is an essential resource, which offers an EU-wide multidisciplinary vocabulary of approximately 500 terms and concepts related to asylum and migration. Let's focus today on the term "access to employment" to make sure we have a common understanding and use of the term!
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Main Theme: Integration
Keywords: access to work, access to employment, labour market access, labour market integration
05 October 2023
Since 2013, Belgium has already resettled more than 4,500 refugees. To celebrate the importance of the program, Fedasil organised today an event bringing together key national and international partners such as the Office of the Commissioner General for Refugees and Stateless Persons, UNHCR, IOM, Foreign Affairs, the Immigration Office and Caritas International.
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Main Theme: International Protection
Keywords: resettlement
04 October 2023
At a meeting of the Council’s permanent representatives committee (COREPER), Member States sealed their negotiating mandate on a regulation on crisis situations, including instrumentalisation of migration, and force majeure in the field of migration and asylum. This position will form the basis of negotiations between the Council presidency and the European Parliament.
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Main Theme: Cross-sectional
Keywords: crisis regulation, migration instrumentalization, solidarity, relocation, New Pact on Migration and Asylum
04 October 2023
The department "Alternatives To Detention" (ATD) from the Immigration Office organises walk-in counters for illegally staying persons who wish to receive ICAM coaching, every Wednesday from 9 until 12h in Brussels, Antwerp and Liège.
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Main Theme: Irregular Migration
Keywords: individual case management, durable solution, illegally staying person
29 September 2023
On the proposal of the Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration Nicole de Moor, the Council of Ministers approved today a draft royal decree relating to the granting of material assistance to applicants for international protection benefiting from professional income.