More than 100 organisations call for rejection of proposed EU Return Regulation under PICUM initiative
A joint initiative coordinated by the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants (PICUM) has brought together over 100 organisations across Europe to urge EU institutions to reject the proposed Return Regulation. The statement, issued on 11 February 2026, highlights concerns that the regulation could expand immigration detention, limit access to essential services, and increase surveillance and control over people in an irregular situation. The European Parliament’s Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) is scheduled to vote on the proposal in early March 2026.
The European Commission’s Return Regulation proposes a common system for the return of third-country nationals staying illegally in the EU, including mandatory cooperation from returnees, mutual recognition of return decisions across Member States, and the use of return hubs in third countries. The proposal has already prompted reactions from international experts: on 26 January 2026, 16 UN Special Rapporteurs, Independent Experts, and Working Groups sent a joint letter to the European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council of the EU, warning that the proposed regulation may impose reporting duties on professionals, discourage access to essential services, and undermine fundamental rights.
On 11 February 2026, PICUM coordinated a joint statement from over 100 European and national organisations highlighting potential consequences of the proposed Return Regulation. Critics note that the detection measures could allow police raids in private homes, offices, and shelters run by humanitarian organisations without a judicial mandate. Police checks in public spaces have already occurred in some Member States, including large-scale controls at transport hubs and internal border checks. The proposal may also expand the use of surveillance technologies, such as bulk collection of personal data and biometric identification systems, and could impose mandatory reporting obligations on public authorities. Signatories have warned that these measures risk enabling racial profiling and discriminatory targeting of racialised communities, which has already been reported as a routine practice in some EU countries.
The signatory organisations call on policymakers, public authorities, public service workers, civil society organisations, and communities across Europe to reject detection measures in all their forms and to oppose policies that criminalise people based on their residence status. They urge the European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council of the EU to consider these concerns and reject the proposed Return Regulation.
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