REGINE Regularisations in Europe Final Report - European ...

that can combine migration management with the protection of refugees: “[M]igration management
must take due account of international refugee protection obligations, including the importance of
identifying people in need of international protection and determining appropriate solutions for
them” 303 . According to UNHCR, mixed migration towards the European Union’s borders cannot be
addressed by “enhanced border and migration control measures alone”, but should involve “close cooperation
among states within the European Union, as well as with governments of countries of transit
and origin.” 304
In 2006 the Office developed a ten-point action plan of protection tools, especially relevant for
refugees who are at risk of refoulement, human rights violations and other potential hazards. The
framework could be developed into broad migration strategies and could have an impact on the
introduction of regularisation measures. The action plan proposes mechanisms to make asylum
proceedings more flexible and transparent and which could, subsequently, reduce backlogs in
applications. The measures include: (i) the establishment of protection-sensitive State entry systems
(training of border guards on how to respond to asylum applications); (ii) the development of
appropriate reception arrangements (registration of new arrivals and provision with temporary
documentation) and (iii) the launch of mechanisms for profiling and referral (initial determination and
counselling in order to establish whether people wish to seek asylum. and to identify other available
options, including return, regularisation or regular onward migration. 305
In some situations, the UNHCR argues, refugees and other relevant persons of concern could profit
from migrant-worker programmes or temporary work permits. Similarly, refugees could benefit from
legal onward movement from the host State to a third country through regular migration channels. 306
Regarding persons who do not meet the criteria for refugee status, UNHCR proposes to take into
consideration alternative temporary migration options: “these could variously allow them to stay
legally in the country of arrival, or to move to a third country for humanitarian reasons, or for the
purposes of work, education or family reunion. Efforts to address mixed population movements
should also explore a place for regular migration options, temporary or even longer term.” 307
In its commentary on the Commission’s 2007 Green Paper on the future common European asylum
system also sees a need for a common European policy on regularisation: “While it is beyond the
scope of UNHCR’s mandate to comment on regularization measures for persons who are not in need
303 UNHCR (2007): Observations on the occasion of the First Euro-Mediterranean Ministerial Meeting on
Migration Algarve, 18-19 November 2007. Available at:
http://www.unhcr.org/protect/PROTECTION/473d554b2.pdf , p.1
304 UNHCR (2007): Implementing the Ten-Point Plan of Action in Southern Europe: Activities Undertaken by
UNHCR to Address Mixed Migration in the Context of the Mediterranean/Atlantic Arrivals. Available at:
http://www.unhcr.org/protect/PROTECTION/452ce4cd4.pdf, p.1
305 UNHCR (2007): Refugee Protection and Mixed Migration: A 10-Point Plan of Action, revised January 2007,
http://www.unhcr.org/protect/PROTECTION/4742a30b4.pdf, p.3
306 UNHCR (2007): Global Appeal 2008-2009; Available at: http://www.unhcr.org/publ/PUBL/474ac8c12.pdf,
p.28
307 UNHCR (2007): Refugee Protection and Mixed Migration, op. cit., p.3-4
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