Authors: Frowin Rausis & Sandra Lavenex
European governments have been expanding their use of extra-European return diplomacy, using diplomatic tools and internal coordination to manage the return of people who no longer have a legal right to stay in Europe. This has led to a growing mix of Intergovernmental Return Frameworks that range from formal agreements to more flexible, non-binding arrangements.
These negotiations aren’t simple. Interests rarely align, values can clash, and the outcomes are not always made public, which raises familiar concerns about transparency, legitimacy, and how well these frameworks work in practice.
This Policy Brief offers a set of recommendations for European Union institutions and European states involved in these processes. The focus is on setting more realistic expectations, improving coordination within governments, pairing broad cooperation with clearer commitments, and giving partners a stronger role in shaping outcomes.
At the heart of it is a simple idea: effective and sustainable return cooperation depends on long-term, trust-based relationships rather than short-term pressure. This brief outlines a way to move in that direction.