A controversial new clause in the EU’s migration policy overhaul would give police across the bloc the power to enter private homes in search of undocumented migrants facing deportation.
Inserted as Article 23a of the revised Return Regulation, the proposal allows law enforcement to “search homes or other relevant premises” and seize personal belongings as part of deportation operations.
The provision, agreed in recent Council compromise negotiations and seen by EUobserver, is due to be endorsed by EU interior ministers as a general approach at their meeting in Brussels on Monday (8 December).
It also echoes recent efforts by the Belgian government that would allow police, possibly accompanied by an immigration officer, to force entry into any residence without the home owner’s consent in order to execute removal orders.
Civil rights groups in Belgium warn the Belgian measure risks creating a chilling effect on solidarity among ordinary people.
And Belgian organisations such as CIRÉ say it would allow police to raid homes without warning on anyone suspected of sheltering undocumented migrants.
Police raids aside, the EU’s return regulation itself is promising to expand immigration detention up to 30 months, including for children.
Nikolaj Nielsen