The report primarily draws on ECRE’s Asylum Information Database (AIDA) country reports, complemented by desk research. The AIDA reports are prepared by national experts in cooperation with stakeholders, including NGOs, lawyers and national authorities, and are edited and verified by ECRE.

Regarding places of detention, ECRE identifies concerns about the use of prisons, police stations and other unsuitable facilities for administrative detention. It recommends that states ensure that detention facilities are appropriately located and equipped, and that any expansion of detention capacity is accompanied by adequate funding, staffing and safeguards. Staff should also receive comprehensive and mandatory training on detention standards, vulnerabilities, mental health, de-escalation techniques and the lawful use of force.

Regarding detention conditions, the report highlights shortcomings relating to living conditions, healthcare, access to open-air spaces and activities, and access to lawyers, NGOs and monitoring bodies. ECRE recommends, among other measures, ensuring access to healthcare equivalent to national standards, including preventive, emergency, specialist and mental health care, and maintaining effective and independent monitoring of detention facilities.

For people in vulnerable situations, ECRE stresses that detention should be a last resort and based on an individual assessment of vulnerability, health and the best interests of the person concerned. It recommends that children should not be detained and that, where detention exceptionally occurs, child-appropriate facilities, education, play and psychosocial support should be provided. Similar safeguards and appropriate care are recommended for other people in vulnerable situations.

In its conclusions, ECRE notes that while the legal framework governing detention conditions under the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum remains largely unchanged, the expanded grounds for detention of asylum applicants risk exacerbating existing structural deficiencies. The report therefore stresses the importance of ensuring that alternatives to detention are available and effectively applied, alongside sustained investment in detention conditions, stronger oversight and a shift away from coercive approaches to detention.

For further details, please read the report attached above.