The Commission is today presenting:

1. A renewed Action Plan on Return that sets out steps at each stage of the return process to tackle key challenges for return both at EU level and in the cooperation with countries of origin and transit.

Actions proposed at EU level include inter alia: (i) increased financial support to Member States; (ii) improving information exchange to enforce return by collecting real time information at national level and sharing it using the existing Integrated Return Management Application, as well as speeding up work on adopting the proposals to reform the Schengen Information System and Eurodac and to establish an EU Entry-Exit System (EES) and a European Travel Information System (ETIAS); (iii) exchanging best practices to ensure reintegration packages are consistent and coherent among all Member States; (iv) working to swiftly conclude the negotiations of Readmission Agreements with Nigeria, Tunisia and Jordan and striving to engage with Morocco and Algeria and (v) employ collective leverage in a coordinated and effective manner through tailor-made approaches with third countries (within the Partnership Framework).

2. A set of concrete recommendations to Member States, providing clear guidance about concrete and immediate actions Member States can take to make return procedures more effective when implementing the EU's legislation on returns.

The Commission notably recommends that Member States inter alia: (i) improve the coordination among the services involved in the return process, (ii) remove inefficiencies and combine decisions on the ending of legal stay with the issuance of a return decision to avoid duplicate work, (iii) tackle abuse of the system aimed at preventing removal, (iv) prevent absconding by detaining people who show signs that they will not comply with a return decision, (v) increase the effectiveness of return procedures and decisions and (vi) set up operational assisted voluntary return programmes by 1 June 2017.

More information:

Press release “European Agenda on Migration: Commission presents new measures for an efficient and credible EU return policy” published on 2 March 2017 by the European Commission