Asylum and Migration Overview 2025 - Belgian report

The Belgian Asylum and Migration Overview 2025 identifies several key developments in asylum and migration policies, alongside political changes affecting migration and asylum governance, including:

• In 2025, Belgian asylum and migration policy was shaped by the formation of a new federal government and the adoption of the Federal Coalition Agreement 2025–2029, which set out a more restrictive overall policy direction.
   
• The Federal Coalition Agreement and subsequent policy note emphasise more selective labour migration, improved coordination between levels of government, more efficient single permit procedures, and stronger safeguards against exploitation and abuse.
   
• At federal level, important legislative changes were also made to family reunification rules, including higher income thresholds, stricter age and housing requirements, and waiting periods for certain sponsors.
   
• Belgium recorded 34.439 applicants for international protection, while the structural backlog in the procedure and the saturation of the reception network remained major concerns.
   
• While the number of new beneficiaries of temporary protection continued to decline, refusal decisions increased significantly.
   
• Developments concerning unaccompanied minors focused on age assessment, guardianship, reception, child protection and transition to adulthood. The number of unaccompanied minors entering the reception network declined further in 2025.
   
• In the field of citizenship, Belgium significantly increased the registration fee for applying for nationality.
   
• In the area of borders, visa and Schengen, developments include intensified internal police checks under Article 23 of the Schengen Borders Code, the further digitalization of visa processing and the rolling out of the Entry/Exit System (EES) and related interoperability measures.
   
• Trafficking in human beings remained an important policy priority, combining legislative and policy measures with targeted initiatives to enhance operational capacities, training and awareness-raising activities, and international cooperation.
   
• Measures to inform and guide irregularly staying migrants towards long-term solutions, including legal stay, voluntary return or another sustainable outcome, continued in 2025.
   
• Return remained central to Belgian migration policy in 2025 and continued to rest on two complementary pillars: assisted voluntary return and reintegration, and forced return.

For further details, please read the Belgian report attached above.

Asylum and Migration Overview 2025 - European report

The European Asylum and Migration Overview 2025 will be available here from mid-July 2026.