The interior ministers of all 27 European Union member states last month reached a political agreement on a set of reforms that are widely seen as a significant shift in Europe’s approach to migration. The meeting in Brussels gave fresh momentum to implementation of the new Pact on Migration and Asylum, which is scheduled to come into effect in mid-2026 and will overhaul the EU’s asylum system.
The package—parts of which have gotten signoff from the European Parliament, while others will need to be negotiated—includes new rules for people whose asylum claims have been rejected, a broader and more flexible definition of what counts as a “safe third country” where asylum-seekers can wait to have their claims processed, and an EU-wide list of safe countries of origin.
Taken together, these changes make it easier for governments to turn down asylum applications, strengthening a strategy that shifts more responsibilities for managing migration outside of the EU. The ministers also agreed on the size of the solidarity pool, a mechanism meant to help share the burden for asylum-seekers across EU countries. But questions remain about whether this externally focused approach and the promise of internal solidarity can truly work alongside each other.