Five EU countries are working together on repatriation centers
According to Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU), Germany is participating in a working group with Austria, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Greece. The aim of the collaboration is to develop concepts for deportation centers ("return hubs") outside the EU.
According to various media outlets, including Tagesschau and Tagesspiegel, the five states want to develop a plan for implementing the deportation centers and prepare initial agreements with suitable third countries before the end of this year. Other EU member states could join the project at a later date.
According to Dobrindt, the European Commission is involved in the process. However, political responsibility for implementation and for any agreements with third countries will lie with the participating countries.
Dobrindt declined to comment on which countries outside the EU could be considered as locations for such centers. The selection of potential partner countries is part of the ongoing planning phase.
Background: What are "return hubs"?
Return hubs are planned repatriation or deportation centers outside the European Union. They are intended to house people who
- whose asylum application is considered unfounded, for example because they come from a country of origin that is classified as safe, or
- have entered the EU via a third country classified as safe, or
- whose asylum application has been legally rejected and
- who are awaiting deportation.
From these centers, those affected are to be returned either to their countries of origin or, depending on the circumstances, to other countries. As things stand at present, the main focus is on organizing repatriation. How long those affected are to be housed in such centers and under what conditions remains unclear.
In the long term, there are also discussions at EU level about whether asylum procedures could in future take place entirely or partially in third countries. However, there are no concrete plans for this at present.
Basis: Reform of the European Asylum System (GEAS)
Dobrindt cites the reform of the Common European Asylum System (CEAS) as the (legal) basis for the plans. The reform, which will officially come into force in the summer of 2026, provides for accelerated asylum procedures, stricter controls at the EU's external borders, and consistent enforcement of returns, among other things.
In addition, the list of safe countries of origin is to be expanded. Asylum seekers from these countries are generally not entitled to asylum in the European Union. Their applications can therefore be rejected more quickly as unfounded.
In addition, there is a new possibility to deport asylum seekers to third countries with which they have no personal connection —for example , through previous residence, transit, family ties, or previous settlement.
According to the five participating states, the new GEAS regulations also open up scope for "innovative models" such as return centers outside the EU. However, there is currently no concrete EU-wide basis for return hubs.
Federal Interior Minister Dobrindt emphasized that a functioning asylum system also requires functioning repatriation procedures. Anyone who is not granted protection in the EU must expect to have to leave Europe again.
A first concrete agreement with a third country has already been reached with the Netherlands. The Dutch government has agreed with Uganda to set up a return center there. From this center, people from the region are to be returned to their countries of origin.
Criticism from human rights organizations
Human rights organizations and refugee aid agencies are strongly criticizing the plans for return hubs. They warn that European responsibility for those seeking protection could increasingly be outsourced to third countries.
At the same time, they see risks in unclear detention and accommodation conditions, as well as in limited legal protection outside the European Union.
It is particularly problematic that European protection and procedural standards may not be observed there and that those affected find it much more difficult to assert their rights than within EU member states.
Will other EU countries participate in the return hubs?
It is currently unclear whether other EU member states will join the working group. Many countries have so far relied on voluntary return programs. Luxembourg's Interior Minister Léon Gloden stated that his country has been specifically supporting voluntary return and reintegration in countries of origin for over a year. At the same time, he made it clear that coercive measures are also possible in the event of a lack of cooperation.
There are also figures on voluntary returns from Germany: according to the German government, around 4,000 Syrian nationals have voluntarily returned to their home country since the change of power in Syria. According to the BAMF, almost 6,000 Syrians had also applied for financial support to return to their home country by the end of 2025.
Magnus Brunner, EU Commissioner for Home Affairs and Migration, considers 2025 to be a "good year" in terms of European migration. The return rate in the European Union rose to around 27 percent in 2025, after standing at around 19 percent at the beginning of the year.
Conclusion: What happens next?
Before return hubs can actually be set up, several political and legal steps still need to be taken at EU level. Only when the EU Parliament and EU member states reach an agreement can a regulation be adopted. This would create the legal basis for return centers in third countries.
Such decisions usually take a long time at EU level. Many months or even several years often pass between political announcements, deliberations in Parliament, and the final decision.
Even after a decision has been made at EU level, implementation is not automatically guaranteed. Return centers outside the EU can only be set up if the respective third countries agree. This would require additional agreements. Whether and which countries would be willing to do so is currently unclear.
For those affected, this currently means that the plans have no immediate legal consequences. Ongoing asylum procedures, existing Residence permit and national asylum decisions remain unchanged.
The impact that return hubs could have on European asylum and residence law in the future depends on further political decisions at EU level and on possible agreements with third countries. Those affected should closely monitor further developments, as possible changes could have a long-term impact on return procedures.
