The Immigration Office has published annual figures related to forced returns from prisons. The data show that 1.261 forced returns were carried out from prisons in 2024, compared to 1.428 in 2023 and 1.511 in 2022. 

The Immigration Office identifies two key reasons for the decline in the number of removals from prisons. The first is that detainees are now more often serving their full sentences. In the past, they were almost automatically released early, but today, a judge must decide on early release following a request from the detainee. A second factor is that, due to overcrowding, hundreds of convicted individuals serve their sentences outside of prison under various emergency measures, such as extended prison leave. This includes detainees who are staying irregularly in the country, making it more difficult for the Immigration Office to arrange their forced return.

Among the nationalities most represented in forced returns from prisons in 2024, the Immigration Office identifies primarily Albanians (220), Moroccans (212), and Algerians (134). 

The Belgian government agreement of 31 January 2025 (in French or Dutch) addresses these issues, stressing the immense pressure on prisons. It states, among other things, that Belgian authorities will seek to "negotiate agreements with other European rule-of-law states to build or lease prisons where detainees in irregular stay, who have been definitively convicted of crimes or offences, can serve all or part of their sentence (...) The sentence imposed here will then be served there. In such cases, these detainees will be expelled to their country of origin or another country where they can legally stay at the end of their sentence".

For figures on effective removals from the Immigration Office, please view this page in French or in Dutch.