Safe countries package

Background

In the framework of the implementation of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum adopted in December 2023, a Regulation (EU) 2024/1348 introduced the possibility of creating a common EU list of safe countries of origin, to overcome a situation in which each Member State had its own list.

The countries proposed as safe are Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, India, Kosovo, Morocco and Tunisia which, according to the Commission's document, have been selected based on respect for rule of law, democracy, and human rights; absence of persecution or serious harm as defined in the EU Qualification Regulation.

The EESC welcomes the move towards harmonisation but raises significant concerns about the impact on asylum seekers’ rights, the adequacy of procedural safeguards, and the risk of arbitrary or discriminatory treatment.

In this opinion the EESC:

• supports standardising the designation of safe countries, which is currently inconsistent and lacks transparency across Member States. It stresses the need for effective supranational oversight to ensure fairness and consistency;
• suggests that a country should only be designated as “safe” if there are no verified human rights violations that would require international protection;
• argues that accelerated procedures can lead to superficial assessments, wrongful refusals, and an increase in undocumented migrants, with negative social consequences;
• recommends that every asylum application should be assessed thoroughly and individually, with adequate time and resources;
• proposes that the safe country concept should not be used merely to expedite likely unfounded applications, as this risks undermining applicants’ rights.

Additional Information

EESC section: External Relations (REX)

Opinion number: REX/-610 EESC-2025

Opinion type: Optional Referral COM(2025) 186 final 2025/0101 COD, COM(2025) 186 final 2025/0101 COD, COM(2025) 259 final 2025/0132 COD

Rapporteur: BARBIERI Pietro Vittorio, Diversity Europe - GR III, Italy

Date of adoption by the section: 9 September 2025

Date of adoption in plenary: 21-23 October 2025

Result of the vote in plenary: 183 in favour/14 against/23 abstentions

Contact

Millie Tsoumani

Press Officer, Email: amalia.tsoumani@eesc.europa.eu

Daniele Vitali 

Policy Officer, Email: Daniele.Vitali@eesc.europa.eu