Improving the EU Immigration System: reflections in the light of the Return Directive

This paper focuses on the current state of EU immigration legislation and aims to provide a critical analysis and suggestions for improvement in the future. Over the past ten years, EU Summits have emphasized the need for the adoption of new legislative measures in order to converge to a true European common policy on immigration. Nowadays, the mainstream debate on immigration in Europe focuses on several different topics. On the one hand, there is the need to secure the borders and control undocumented immigration, while on the other hand there is the question of the protection of migrants’ human rights and the improvement of the EU immigration system. There is also a third element, which concerns the EU relations with the immigrants’ countries of origin. I intend to examine the new return Directive in the light of EU law and of international human rights law. This Directive sets out the rules and principles to be applied by Member States in cases of illegal immigration, and the measures to be taken by the EU Members. The Directive covers different areas and it applies to third country nationals who do not fulfil, or no longer fulfil, conditions of entry in accordance with EU legislation. In addition, the paper will discuss whether it is possible for the EU to adopt a policy to contribute to the local development of the countries of origin. Within this framework, I will try to answer the following questions: • Is the new EU legislation compatible with international human rights law (in particular, the 1951 Geneva Convention and the 1989 UN Convention on the Rights of the Child)? • Does this new Directive preserve compliance with the European Convention on Human Rights? • What are the implications for the EU immigration system? • What is the possible effect of this new EU directive on relationships with the countries of origin of the immigrants?