EU´s Readmission Deals Under the Light of Global Compact On Migration
The New York Declaration recalled everyone's right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his or her country. Declaration also reminds that States must readmit their returning nationals and ensure that they are received without undue delay, following confirmation of their nationalities under national legislation. These and other principles were crystallized in the adoption of two non-binding Compacts, the Global Compact on Refugees (GCR) and the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration (GCM). This paper analyzes the links between these relevant non-binding documents and new trends in the European Union readmission policy. The main focus of the analysis is Objective 21 GCM which calls for increased cooperation in readmission matters in full compliance with international human rights obligations. The return and readmission of people who do not have the right to remain in European territory are one of the main objectives of the EU immigration policy. To this end, the EU already has its competence, albeit shared with states, to conclude readmission agreements with third parties that speed up identifying and returning third-country nationals. A quite new trend in EU readmission policy is to conclude practical readmission agreements(better-called arrangements or deals) in an informal form. These informal arrangements fall within the category of soft law and affect legal certainty and other structural principles in the EU legal order. With the example of the renewed arrangement with Afghanistan, the possible compatibility between these practices and the GCM would be examined. A conclusion on the future trends ahead within the proposed New Pact on Migration and Asylum is made to understand if the trend to use informal instruments is expected to continue.