THE European Union has approved a strict new deportation law allowing migrants to be sent to offshore detention camps – with Spain the sole country to vote against.
Under the controversial ‘return regulation’, Brussels has opened the door for member states to strike agreements with non-EU nations to host holding facilities for deported foreigners.
It paves the way for an EU-wide equivalent of the UK’s abandoned Rwanda scheme, with a coalition of five nations already pushing to establish the first camp in Africa by 2027.
Greece, Germany, Austria, Denmark and the Netherlands are leading the initiative, with Athens claiming an unnamed African partner country has already been selected.
“Around two in three people ordered to leave the EU do not actually leave,” said Jim O’Callaghan, Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration in Ireland said.
“The revised return rules adopted today will assist member states in implementing swift returns effectively.
“This is crucial to deliver a common approach to migration management under the pact on migration and asylum.”
The new legislation applies to anyone residing in the EU irregularly, including those who have lost their residency permits or overstayed their legal limits.
The new law also grants police across the bloc new powers to raid homes and workplaces suspected of housing undocumented foreigners.
Authorities will have the right to confiscate passports, withdraw state aid and detain individuals for up to two years if they refuse to leave the territory.
Spain was the only member state to reject the fast-tracked legislation at the EU Council of Ministers in Luxembourg on Thursday, while Belgium abstained.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska told his European counterparts that the new rules lack legal guarantees and pose an ‘unacceptable risk’ to human rights.
“Spain maintains its enormous concern over the return centres,” he said.
He warned that the agreements mean even families with young children could be deported to third countries where they have no ties.
Madrid also questioned how the offshore camps will actually improve deportation rates, pointing out there is no cost-benefit analysis and no incentive for migrants to remain in a host country they have no connection to.
Brussels pushed the legislation through in record time after European Commission figures showed only 25% of expulsion orders were successfully carried out in 2025.
The new rules are designed to harmonise and speed up the removal of people who have arrived in Europe irregularly or lost their right to remain.
But critics warn the new home-search powers bear a striking resemblance to the aggressive immigration raids carried out by ICE in the United States.
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I totally agree with the EU’s decision!