The new EU-wide laws on migration and asylum will come into effect from Friday 12 June.
The European Union’s Pact on Migration and Asylum comes into force across the bloc from Friday, 12 June.
The pact was signed in May 2024 following years of painstaking negotiations between member states — which began in the aftermath of the 2015 migrant crisis — over how to manage the asylum system at an EU level.
“After years of intense work, we now have a robust, balanced framework to manage migration in the EU. The Pact on Migration and Asylum strengthens the protection of our external borders, it makes asylum procedures faster and more efficient and ensures the right balance between solidarity and responsibility,” according to Finnish EU Commissioner Henna Virkkunen.
Signatory countries, including Finland, were given two years to implement the pact’s 10 pieces of legislation.
The pact is intended to create faster and more efficient procedures at the EU’s external borders, a streamlined asylum and return process, as well as improved cooperation between member states.
The overhauled laws will also eliminate weak links in the EU’s current system, “which people smugglers in particular are trying to exploit”, according to a press release from the Finnish interior ministry.
New procedures at Finland’s borders
The law changes mean that Finnish border authorities can now process — and deny — asylum applications that are considered unfounded at the point of entry.
A newly-introduced screening procedure will verify the identity of the person seeking to enter the EU, assess any risk they may pose, and determine whether they should be offered asylum or returned to the country of origin.
According to the Finnish interior ministry, this process will “hinder the operation of criminal organisations”.
Safe countries and return hubs
The rollout of the pact will also allow Finnish authorities to transfer the asylum process to a safe country outside the EU.
This could happen, for example, if the applicant has travelled to the EU via the country in question.
In addition, the pact permits member states to set up so-called ‘return hubs’ — where people found to be living illegally in the EU after receiving negative asylum decisions could be sent.
Interior Minister Mari Rantanen (Finns) told reporters in Luxembourg last week that Finland has already begun negotiations with other Nordic nations about the possibility of jointly setting up such a centre.
Restricted reception
Finland’s system of housing asylum seekers and temporary protection applicants at reception centres will also undergo significant changes as a result of the migration pact.
For example, asylum seekers may in future be restricted to a particular geographical area, while their overall freedom of movement may be limited if they are considered a flight risk.
Reception services will also only be available to third-country nationals and stateless persons when they apply for asylum for the first time or when they receive temporary protection.
“On a case-by-case basis, the basic component of reception allowance may be reduced and, in certain situations, reception services may also be withdrawn, in which case the person’s livelihood will be ensured by commodities,” the interior ministry’s press release said.
In addition, asylum seekers will be obligated to identify themselves at reception centres 2-4 times per month, while beneficiaries of temporary protection will need to do so once a month.
