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According to Statbel, the Belgian statistical office, 3.721 persons obtained Belgian nationality in May 2023. The main countries of origin of people who acquired Belgian nationality in May are Morocco, Syria, Romania, Afghanistan and Italy.
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Main theme: Citizenship & Nationality
Keywords: access to nationality, Belgian nationality
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The Secretary of State for Asylum and Migration tasked the Immigration Office to implement a prevention campaign to make people in Nigeria aware of the dangers of human trafficking, exploitation and the risks associated with irregular migration.
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Main theme: Irregular Migration
Keywords: prevention campaign, human trafficking, Nigeria
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Today, the Minister of Justice, Mr. Vincent Van Quickenborne, officially launched the campaign in Liège. On this occasion, he inaugurated the new telephone number - 078 055 800 - of the Belgian helpline for victims of human trafficking.
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Main theme: Smuggling & Trafficking
Keywords: blue heart campaign, victim of trafficking
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Myria has published the fourth thematic section of its 2023 annual report. This section entitled "Economic migration, free movement en students" reports that 8.098 long-stay visas were granted for professional reasons to third-country nationals in 2022 (46% more than in 2021) and 19.721 single permits were issued to third-country nationals in 2022 (75% more than in 2021).
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Main theme: Economic migration
Keywords: long-stay visa, single permit, posted worker, student
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During the first six months of 2023, the Belgian Red Cross-Flanders already helped 152 people – mostly refugees – in their search for lost relatives. That is the highest number since 2017. The organisation is looking for volunteers who want to commit at least 6 hours a week to help find the missing relatives.
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Main theme: Family reunification
Keywords: refugee, missing relative
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In a press release today, Frontex reported 330 000 irregular border crossings detected in 2022. This is the highest number since 2016 and an increase of 64% from the previous year.
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Main theme: Irregular Migration
Keywords: irregular border crossing, external border
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The European Crime Prevention Award (ECPA) and Best Practice Conference (BPC) will focus on the trafficking in human beings for the purpose of labour exploitation and other kinds of exploitation.
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Main theme: Smuggling & Trafficking
Keywords: human trafficking, labour exploitation, crime prevention
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With this awareness campaign entitled "Working together in the fight against human smuggling – Help save lives!", the Police want to encourage both nautical equipment dealers and citizens to report suspicious purchases or movements on the beach to the police via 112, via the 112 app or directly via the 101.
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Main theme: Smuggling & Trafficking
Keywords: human smuggling, awareness campaign, nautical equipment
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Following the recent tragic loss of life off the Greek coast, a short report of the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA) suggests what the EU should do to prevent more deaths at sea. FRA calls on the European Commission, EU Member States and EU Agencies to act now to prevent future tragedies and save lives.
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Main theme: Irregular Migration
Keywords: migrant death, fundamental right, search and rescue
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Following preliminary questions from German courts, the Court of Justice of the European Union clarified, in a judgment today, the conditions for loss of status under Council Directive 2003/109/EC of 25 November 2003 concerning the status of third-country nationals who are long-term residents.
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Main theme: Migration
Keywords: long term resident, loss of status
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Today, in the Committee on Justice of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives, Minister Vincent Van Quickenborne announced that Mr. Klaus Vanhoutte, former director of Payoke and one of the experts of the Special Committee on Trafficking in Human Beings and People Smuggling, had been recruited and appointed as national coordinator for the fight against human trafficking and smuggling.
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Main theme: Smuggling & Trafficking
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The national conference organised by EMN Austria this year will facilitate an insightful discussion among experts on the efficient and humanitarian management of EU’s external borders.
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Main theme: Borders & Visa
Keywords: external border, border management
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Through a toolbox, the Commission wants to support Member States with strategic measures to address cases where transport means are misused to facilitate irregular migration to the EU, with a particular focus on airways.
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Main theme: Irregular Migration
Keywords: transport operator, smuggling network
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This seminar will examine new findings on how Schengen emerged, how its current design was shaped and which topics are likely to dominate the future political agenda.
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Main theme: Borders & Visa
Keywords: Schengen
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The special parliamentary Commission tasked to assess the Belgian legislation and policy on trafficking in and smuggling of human beings adopted today 100 recommendations dealing with various forms of exploitation such as economic exploitation, sexual exploitation, the exploitation of begging, forced criminality, illegal adoption, and forced marriage.
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Today, the Commission adopted a Communication on the monitoring of the EU's visa-free travel regimes setting out a consultation process. To address challenges and prevent risks effectively, existing rules concerning the monitoring of the functioning of visa-free regimes with third countries and the suspension of visa exemptions should be re-assessed and improved.
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Main theme: Borders & Visa
Keywords: visa-free travel, visa suspension mechanism
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This report is part of the Commission's initiative to further reinforce the Schengen governance through a yearly reporting exercise presenting the state of Schengen, identifying challenges and best practices, as well as priority areas for action. The State of Schengen Report 2023 will serve as basis for political discussions and steer at the Council on 8 June 2023.
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Main theme: Borders & Visa
Keywords: Schengen
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British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen agreed to strengthen cooperation between the EU and UK on migration through developing a new working arrangement between UK agencies and Frontex, enabling them to "work together on critical operational and strategic challenges including the situation in the Channel".
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Main theme: Irregular Migration
Keywords: English channel, Frontex
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This hybrid annual conference will debate the latest developments and challenges in the EU’s internal and external border management. It will analyse the latest proposals and reforms on the functioning and operation of EU border management systems, including Schengen, as well as Frontex’ role and responsibilities. A particular focus will be given to the ongoing situation at the EU’s eastern border.
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Main theme: Borders & Visa
Keywords: border management, EU border agency, Schengen, Frontex, migrant smuggling
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This conference will examine the issues at the core of the current debates about Schengen like the balance between solidarity & responsibility between States in liaison with secondary movements of asylum seekers, the persistence of controls at Schengen internal borders, the way to monitor human rights at the external borders, the increasing recourse to large-scale databases,...
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Main theme: Borders & Visa
Keywords: Schengen, Schengen acquis
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The Fair Recruitment Initiative (FRI) was launched in 2014 as part of the International Labour Organization (ILO) Director General’s call for a Fair Migration Agenda. Since its launch, the FRI has been critical to ILO’s work in the area of national and international recruitment of workers.
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Main theme: Economic migration
Keywords: migrant worker, fair recruitment, fair migration agenda
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Myria has published the first thematic section of its 2023 annual report. This section entitled "Access to the territory" presents the main key figures relating to short and long-stay visas as well as the different reasons and nationalities that stood out in 2022.
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Main theme: Borders & Visa
Keywords: access to the territory, short-stay visa, long-stay visa
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In the first three months of this year, 959 irregularly staying third-country nationals were subject to forced return from Belgium. That is twice as many as in the same period last year, when it concerned 502 persons.
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Main theme: Return & Readmission
Keywords: irregularly staying third-country national, forced return
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Ahead of the Artificial Intelligence Act vote in the European Parliament, a coalition of human rights organisations is calling on EU lawmakers to include provisions in the proposed EU AI Act to protect people from AI surveillance technologies used in migration.
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Main theme: Borders & Visa
Keywords: artificial intelligence, border security, fundamental rights
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According to the Court of Justice of the EU, European Union law precludes national legislation which requires, without exception, that an application for family reunification be submitted in person at a competent diplomatic post.