Italy: A year of bold policies to curb irregular immigration

Rome: Italy’s right-wing government wants to set an example the rest of the EU can follow with its migration policy. But it ran into legal obstacles with its cornerstone project – to process asylum claims in Albania.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s government has pointed out repeatedly this year that it has succeeded in reducing irregular migration, with the number of undocumented migrants entering Italy in 2024 down to around 40 percent of last year’s arrivals figure.

The government says this is because many elements of its migration policy – from agreements with North African countries to the deal with Albania – are beginning to work.

The plan was actually announced in 2023, but building started in 2024. With this bilateral agreement signed between Italy and Albania, Italy hoped to process the asylum claims of people it classifies as non-vulnerable male asylum seekers in Albania, but under Italian law. This form of off-shoring is designed to speed up the asylum process, and allow anyone rejected to be sent back to their country of origin more easily without ever setting foot on Italian soil. Under the terms of the agreement, only those rescued in international waters by the Italian authorities, who don’t immediately present as vulnerable and who are from a country deemed safe by Italy, can be taken to Albania. Once there, it was planned that asylum seekers would undergo medical checks, and a speedy asylum process.

The estimated costs of the deal have been set at 650 million euros over five years. Around 252 million euros of the total sum will be used to cover travel between the two countries by officials of the Italian ministries of the interior, justice and health, ANSA reported.

There were major delays with the opening of the centers. They eventually started operating in October. 16 migrants arrived on October 16 in the port of Shengjin, but almost immediately, four of them were sent back to Italy. Within 48-hours the remaining 12 were also returned to Italy.