Five EU Countries Aim to Send Migrants to Return Hubs by 2027

Five European Union countries expect to be ready to send irregular migrants to deportation centers outside the EU by 2027.

The announcement followed a meeting in Copenhagen attended by the interior ministers of Denmark, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, and Greece. These nations agreed on a common model for return hubs to host asylum seekers whose applications have been rejected and who cannot be returned to their countries of origin. The group is negotiating the creation of these hubs in undisclosed partner countries, with Uganda and Rwanda considered likely possibilities.

Danish Migration Minister Morten Bødskov stated that the guiding principle forms the basis for being ready to transfer the first irregular migrants to a partner country outside the EU in 2027. He described the hubs as facilities where partner countries give irregular migrants a new chance, not prisons or detention camps. The five countries plan to fully finance the hubs and may offer additional incentives to partner nations.

German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt indicated a goal to finalize agreements with third countries by the end of the year. The plan has faced criticism from rights groups. The European Parliament approved tougher migration rules in June, paving the way for return hubs.