Irregular migrant entries into the European Union dropped by 18% in the first seven months of 2025, totaling 95,200, Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, has announced.
While most routes saw decreases, pressure remained high across the Mediterranean Sea, especially along a new Libya-Crete corridor. The Central Mediterranean remained the busiest path, with nearly 36,700 crossings – a 9% increase over 2024.
Notably, arrivals from Libya to Crete exceeded 10,000, over four times last year’s total. The Eastern Mediterranean route fell by 16%, to 26,200.
Western Balkan (-47%), Eastern land borders, which refers to refer to the eastern external borders of the EU (-45%), and West Africa (-46%) routes also declined.
In contrast, Channel crossings to the UK surged 26%, reaching 41,800 attempts, due to favorable weather and new smuggling tactics like “simultaneous departures.”
Libyan smuggling networks remain highly organized, exploiting instability.
Algerian and Moroccan rings offer costly multi-stage routes to Spain.
Despite falling numbers, the human toll is stark: 947 deaths in the Mediterranean so far this year, according to the International Organization for Migration.