E.g., 06/07/2026
E.g., 06/07/2026
MPI Europe

MPI Europe

A woman in Amman smiles after completing a form
IOM/Abby Dwommoh

When refugees can access mainstream work visas, this offers opportunities to find safety while also helping destination countries meet pressing labor needs. Yet the design of many work visas puts them out of reach for well-qualified refugees. This visa evaluation framework and scorecard highlight how different characteristics can make a visa more or less accessible, transparent, and predictable.

Worker holds stack of paperwork
iStock.com/JaruekChairak

The European Commission's forthcoming visa strategy must be complemented by national-level policy change given that EU-wide channels represent a small share of total legal migration pathways to Europe. To compete more fully for global talent, European governments will need faster, clearer, and more predictable visa procedures, as this short read explains.

A man with a backpack stands in an airport and looks at a plane
iStock.com/pundapanda

Policymakers across the European Union are seeking ways to incentivize third-country nationals with return orders to comply and voluntarily depart. This study examines whether and how two such measures—return counselling and reintegration assistance—can play a role in migrant decision-making, taking the Netherlands as a case study.

A worker in a hard hat on a ship
© ILO/Marcel Crozet

Labor and skills shortages threaten the European Union’s economic growth. Attracting workers with sought-after skills from abroad will be an important means of addressing these challenges. This report examines best practices for designing and managing labor migration corridors between EU and non-EU countries, with the aim of benefiting countries of destination and origin, employers, and migrant workers alike.

A migrant who returned to Sierra Leone
IOM/Alexander Bee

Many migrant-origin countries are developing policies and institutional structures to support their returning nationals, driven by safety concerns, emergencies, and in some cases pressure from destination countries. This policy brief examines these developments and identifies opportunities to better align local services, national policies, and donor support to strengthen international cooperation on migrant returns and reintegration.

Construction worker holding a blue hard hat.
iStock.com/ljubaphoto

European employers are increasingly reporting difficulties finding workers with the right mix of skills, in sectors ranging from health care to information and communications technology. Alongside investments in workforce training and reskilling, a more joined-up EU approach to attracting and admitting immigrant workers with in-demand skills could help European societies address these shortages, as this report describes.

Recent Activity

Cover image for Building Refugee-Inclusive Labor Mobility Pathways
Reports
February 2026
By  María Belén Zanzuchi, Kate Hooper and Abigail Goldfarb
Worker holds stack of paperwork
Short Reads
December 2025
By  Kate Hooper, Nurbanu Hayır and María Belén Zanzuchi
Cover image for Best Practices for Designing and Managing Labour Migration Corridors to Europe
Reports
December 2025
By  Kate Hooper, María Belén Zanzuchi, Abigail Goldfarb, Ravenna Sohst and Bertrand Steiner
Cover image for Reframing Return and Reintegration
Policy Briefs
October 2025
By  Bertrand Steiner, Adèle Appriou, Ravenna Sohst and Camille Le Coz
Cover image for Building Refugee-Inclusive Labor Mobility Pathways
Reports
February 2026
By  María Belén Zanzuchi, Kate Hooper and Abigail Goldfarb
Cover image for Best Practices for Designing and Managing Labour Migration Corridors to Europe
Reports
December 2025
By  Kate Hooper, María Belén Zanzuchi, Abigail Goldfarb, Ravenna Sohst and Bertrand Steiner
Cover image for Reframing Return and Reintegration
Policy Briefs
October 2025
By  Bertrand Steiner, Adèle Appriou, Ravenna Sohst and Camille Le Coz
Cover image for How Can Labor Migration Policies Help Tackle Europe’s Looming Skills Crisis?
Reports
June 2025
By  Kate Hooper, Tesseltje de Lange and Jasmijn Slootjes
Cover image for Small Boats, Big Stakes
Policy Briefs
June 2025
By  Meghan Benton, Susan Fratzke and Nurbanu Hayır
Cover image for No One-Size-Fits-All...
Policy Briefs
January 2025
By  María Belén Zanzuchi and Bertrand Steiner
Cover image for Exploring Refugees’ Intentions to Return to Ukraine
Reports
December 2024
By  Ravenna Sohst, Tino Tirado, Lucía Salgado and Jasmijn Slootjes
A migrant from Tajikistan outside Moscow.

Millions of immigrants fill key sectors in Russia’s economy, help offset its demographic challenges, and support origin communities, particularly in Central Asia. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, many have also been pressured into joining the military, and meanwhile face continued marginalization by Russian society. This article outlines the key issues facing these migrants, some of which have been complicated by the fallout from the war.

Returned migrants participate in development work in Burkina Faso.

The European Union has tried to leverage development assistance to address root causes of migration from Africa, including poverty, instability, and conflict. The EU Emergency Trust Fund for Africa, unveiled in 2015, has supported more than 250 programs totaling nearly 5 billion euros across 26 countries, but has had only partial success addressing the underlying drivers of migration, as this article explains.

Migrants aboard a rubber vessel are rescued in the Mediterranean

Libya was once a prized destination for workers from around the world. But after Muammar Gaddafi’s overthrow in 2011, the country became the transit point for hundreds of thousands of Europe-bound asylum seekers and other migrants. Following Libya's 2017 deal with Italy to detain and return migrants caught at sea—which was renewed in February 2020—migrants became trapped in an unstable country, facing harrowing realities, as this article explores.

Grape pickers in France

Border closures and lockdowns amid the COVID-19 pandemic have put a chill on intra-EU labor mobility, most immediately with the difficulty for European farmers to gain access to much-needed seasonal workers and for health-care institutions to get care workers. This article explores how these workers, who often face difficult situations, may be more vulnerable now. It also takes on implications for intra-EU labor mobility post-pandemic.

AfricanUnionMinisterialConferenceonMigration

While migration once was a lower-priority topic for African governments, the last decade has seen a deepening in governance. Policymakers have integrated migration into their national development strategies and mainstreamed it across policy domains such as health and education. The actions are promising on paper, yet questions remain about the extent to which they will translate to more effective migration management.

Worker holds stack of paperwork
Short Reads
December 2025
By  Kate Hooper, Nurbanu Hayır and María Belén Zanzuchi
A German border sign next to a road
Short Reads
September 2024
By  Hanne Beirens, Susan Fratzke and Camille Le Coz
European and UK leaders at 2024 European Political Community summit
Short Reads
July 2024
By  Camille Le Coz and Meghan Benton
Image of EU and Member State flags flapping in wind
Short Reads
December 2023
By  Hanne Beirens and Camille Le Coz
Photo of a teacher from Ukraine organizing activities for refugee children in Moldova
Short Reads
February 2023
By  Hanne Beirens, Lucía Salgado and Jasmijn Slootjes
Image of women and young children from Ukraine arriving at train station in Bucharest
Short Reads
October 2022
By  Maria Vincenza Desiderio and Kate Hooper
Home Secretary Priti Patel & Rwandan Foreign Affairs Minister Vincent Biruta hold asylum accord
Short Reads
April 2022
By  Hanne Beirens and Samuel Davidoff-Gore
Belén Zanzuchi speaking on Webinar
Video, Audio
February 26, 2026

This webinar explored labor migration pathways as a potential avenue for qualified refugees to access protection in Europe while helping meet destination countries’ skill needs. Speakers examined ways to make work visas more accessible to qualified refugees and how to remove barriers that prevent refugees from entering via the labor pathway. 

Person at airport looking at phone
Video, Audio
January 13, 2026

Featuring a study on the role that counselling and reintegration programs can play in shaping migrants' return decisions, this webinar examines how timing of such interventions, counselling approaches, and collaboration with trusted origin-country partners can help make these programs more effective.

Healthcare workers helps patient
Video, Audio
December 11, 2025

Featuring discussion of a study that examines best practices for designing and managing labor migration corridors between EU Member States and partner countries, this webinar offers insights on how to connect employers and workers, promote skills development, protect migrant workers, and maximize benefits for both countries of origin and

Afghan Resettlement Programme
Video
September 10, 2025

This discussion, held in Berlin in collaboration with the Robert Bosch Stiftung, examines the relationship between migration policy, integration approaches, public trust, and democratic resilience in Europe and beyond.

Nigerian migrants arrive home through charter flights
Video, Audio
June 25, 2025

This conversation explores emerging models, policy shifts, and lessons learned from the European and Latin American approaches to reintegration and support for returning migrants. 

Recent Activity

Video, Audio, Webinars
February 26, 2026

This webinar explored labor migration pathways as a potential avenue for qualified refugees to access protection in Europe while helping meet destination countries’ skill needs. Speakers examined ways to make work visas more accessible to qualified refugees and how to remove barriers that prevent refugees from entering via the labor pathway. 

Reports
February 2026

When refugees can access mainstream work visas, this offers opportunities to find safety while also helping destination countries meet pressing labor needs. Yet the design of many work visas puts them out of reach for well-qualified refugees. This visa evaluation framework and scorecard highlight how different characteristics can make a visa more or less accessible, transparent, and predictable.

Video, Audio, Webinars
January 13, 2026

Featuring a study on the role that counselling and reintegration programs can play in shaping migrants' return decisions, this webinar examines how timing of such interventions, counselling approaches, and collaboration with trusted origin-country partners can help make these programs more effective.

Short Reads
December 2025

The European Commission's forthcoming visa strategy must be complemented by national-level policy change given that EU-wide channels represent a small share of total legal migration pathways to Europe. To compete more fully for global talent, European governments will need faster, clearer, and more predictable visa procedures, as this short read explains.

Reports
December 2025

Policymakers across the European Union are seeking ways to incentivize third-country nationals with return orders to comply and voluntarily depart. This study examines whether and how two such measures—return counselling and reintegration assistance—can play a role in migrant decision-making, taking the Netherlands as a case study.

Video, Audio, Webinars
December 11, 2025

Featuring discussion of a study that examines best practices for designing and managing labor migration corridors between EU Member States and partner countries, this webinar offers insights on how to connect employers and workers, promote skills development, protect migrant workers, and maximize benefits for both countries of origin and destination.

Reports
December 2025

Labor and skills shortages threaten the European Union’s economic growth. Attracting workers with sought-after skills from abroad will be an important means of addressing these challenges. This report examines best practices for designing and managing labor migration corridors between EU and non-EU countries, with the aim of benefiting countries of destination and origin, employers, and migrant workers alike.

Policy Briefs
October 2025

Many migrant-origin countries are developing policies and institutional structures to support their returning nationals, driven by safety concerns, emergencies, and in some cases pressure from destination countries. This policy brief examines these developments and identifies opportunities to better align local services, national policies, and donor support to strengthen international cooperation on migrant returns and reintegration.