This analysis by the Spanish Institute for Migration Analysis (IEAM) examines the new EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, based on official information and data published by the European Commission’s DG HOME. It reviews Pillars 1 & 2, assessing their policy objectives and key implementation challenges.
Pillar 1 - External Border Management
The first pillar of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum focuses on strengthening the security of the EU’s external borders.
To this end, all irregular migrants arriving at the external borders will be subject to a uniform screening process, including registration, identification, security and health checks. This process will be supported by an expanded Eurodac database, which will facilitate the registration and identification of asylum seekers and irregular migrants, including children from the age of six. Following screening, applicants may then be subject to new mandatory border procedures whenever they are unlikely to qualify for international protection, mislead the authorities or constitute a security risk. Finally, new specific crisis protocols will provide a framework for addressing exceptional situations and enabling rapid responses.
For these measures to be effective, however, stronger operational coordination is needed among border, asylum, migration, security and health authorities. Their implementation also depends on sustained cooperation with non-EU partners, particularly for border management and return procedures. At the same time, Member States need flexible reception systems that can respond effectively to sudden increases in arrivals, while strengthening operational capacity at external borders by ensuring sufficient staff, infrastructure and resources.
Pillar 2 - Fast and Fair Procedures
The second pillar of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum focuses on ensuring fast and fair asylum procedures.
It establishes clear asylum rules determining which Member States are responsible for examining asylum applications, while safeguarding applicants’ rights through stronger procedural guarantees, harmonised reception conditions and improved integration processes. The Pact also sets common criteria for international protection, clarifying both the rights and obligations of beneficiaries. At the same time, the new rules seek to prevent abuse by establishing clear cooperation obligations for applicants and setting strict consequences in cases of non-compliance.
In practice, these measures will be most effective if their implementation remains consistent across the EU. This may be challenging given differences in national capacity, which can lead to variations in national procedures and outcomes, as reflected in diverging recognition rates for applicants with similar profiles across Member States. Ensuring faster processing timelines will add further pressure on national systems, requiring Member States to significantly strengthen their administrative and judicial capacity. Additionally, new cooperation requirements for applicants must be carefully balanced with effective access to protection, especially for those in vulnerable situations.