Migration Policy Centre

➡️ Interested in a deeper, slower-paced analysis of a major current affairs issue?

Join us next Tuesday for a discussion on the displacement dynamics linked to military action and broader coercive measures toward , placing these developments within the wider context of forced mobility.

Rather than treating Iran‑related displacement as an isolated case, this session will explore how sanctions, economic pressures, and geopolitical tensions interact with domestic political conditions to shape migration and displacement patterns both within Iran and across the region.

Register here 📌 https://loom.ly/4FQHjyk

Can help us understand migration aspirations?

Join Melissa Tornari as she explores migration-related conversations on social media forums and what they reveal about how migration aspirations are formed and how people gather information about migration.

Drawing on research conducted with Amir Abdul Reda and Omolola S. Olarinde, the presentation will analyse more than 600 K public social media posts using natural language processing , and predictive inference.

The study examines how -related information-seeking behaviour changed before and during the pandemic, offering new insights into the role of online platforms in shaping migration aspirations.

📅 30 June 2026

🕚 11:00–12:00 CEST

Register here: https://loom.ly/pyl20jY

The implementation phase of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum is now underway.

While much attention has focused on the negotiations, the real test also lies in practice: how policies are implemented across different national contexts and institutional capacities.

Questions such as these are not unique to the Pact. They are central to more broadly 👉 How do policy frameworks translate into effective implementation? How can institutions balance competing objectives? What trade-offs emerge when designing and delivering migration policies?

These are among the issues explored in the'Effective Migration Governance: Policy Impacts and Trade-Offs' executive training, which provides participants with analytical tools and comparative perspectives to navigate complex migration policy challenges.

🗓 5–7 October 2026
📍 Florence
Register here and benefit from the early bird: https://loom.ly/42Fl2DA

This course is organised in partnership with the School of Transnational Governance at the European University Institute

Can policies unintentionally push migrants into irregularisation? Under certain conditions, yes.

A safeguard to prevent it? Transition arrangements.

This policy brief examines how migration policies can better balance migration control and rights protection in Sweden.

Key takeaways:

👉 Migration reforms should include transition arrangements and adopt a longer-term perspective, allowing individuals to plan their lives and avoid falling into irregularity.

👉Policies that restrict viable legal pathways may increase reliance on informal employment, undermining both migration control objectives and rights protection.

👉To maintain legitimacy and policy control, migration measures should be based on transparent criteria. This also presents an important opportunity to address irregularity while aligning migration governance more closely with public preferences.

Read it here: https://loom.ly/Orn5TUM

Professionals need learning opportunities that fit busy schedules while delivering high value.

The 'Effective Migration Governance: Policy Impacts and Trade-Offs' training concentrates learning into 3️⃣ days of applied exchange, offering evidence-informed perspectives and practical insights into policy development and implementation.

For whom?
➡️ Consultants and private experts
➡️ International organisations’ staff
➡️ Members of think tanks or civil society organisations
➡️ Professionals working in NGOs or government agencies
➡️ Journalists and communication professionals
➡️ Researchers at an advanced stage of their PhD or postdoctoral level

5 to 7 October 2026
Save your seat: https://loom.ly/42Fl2DA

This training is co-organised with the School of Transnational Governance

Disagreements over how to respond to divide societies and often contribute to policies that deepen inequalities.

Over the past three years, as part of the , we have interviewed hundreds of migrants, employers, policymakers, and citizens across eight European countries to better understand migrants’ experiences and host societies’ responses.

The findings? Addressing this issue requires less polarising and more sustainable policy approaches that strengthen the protection of fundamental rights while balancing the challenges of regulating immigration.

Learn more 📹 https://loom.ly/AUMx48g

Access our outputs 📌 https://loom.ly/NMJN-sk

New 📢 Local responses to large-scale displacement: insights from Germany, Poland, and Türkiye

How can local governments respond effectively to sudden, large-scale arrivals of displaced people?

We examined three locations across different countries that have experienced intense displacement arrivals and continue to serve as key sites for reception, service provision, and long-term integration.

Despite their different contexts, we identified several common challenges:

🔹Limited administrative capacity
🔹Politicisation of migration debates
🔹Dependence on national and regional frameworks
🔹Fragmented data systems
🔹Unstable funding
🔹Limited academia–policy engagement

Building on engagement between researchers and policymakers, our team developed a series of context-specific experimental actions to strengthen evidence-informed local responses.

Access them here📌https://loom.ly/YFLFRVU

Hein de Haas, author of 'How Migration Really Works', will be the guest speaker at our next seminar!

His research over three decades led to the publication of a book that challenges 22 migration myths from across the political spectrum, revealing that, despite major advances in migration data and research, there is still a need for an entirely new theoretical understanding of human mobility.

On 9 June, Hein de Haas, Professor at the University of Amsterdam and Co-Director of the International Migration Institute, will discuss the importance of conceptualising migration as an intrinsic part of global change and development, and as an inseparable component of broader social transformation processes.

📅 9 June 2026 | Hybrid
👉 11:00 - 12:15 CEST
Save your seat 📌 https://loom.ly/KSBHHkc

As the number of African migrants rises, so too does the level of self-organisation among migrant communities 🤝

In this paper, Amanda Bisong examines how migrant self-organising networks shape African migration governance in both destination and origin countries.

She argues that migrant self-organisation creates alternative spaces for participation and representation, particularly for migrants who are excluded from formal political processes.

➡️ Overall, this perspective contributes to a growing body of scholarship that recognises non-state actors as co-producers of migration governance and transnational development, rather than merely implementers of externally defined agendas.

Learn more 📌 https://loom.ly/EkIQ-r

📄 New | Irregular migrants in : Key challenges and policy options

As Croatia increasingly shifts from a country of emigration and transit to a destination for migrant labour, important gaps in governance are becoming more visible.

Davor Petrić examines how Croatian law, labour market dynamics, and institutional practices shape the rights and living conditions of irregular migrants amid growing labour shortages.

The brief highlights:

- Limited legal protections for irregular migrants
- Gaps between rights “on paper” and rights “in practice”
- Growing risks of labour exploitation and precarious employment linked to labour shortages and administrative barriers

Access the policy recommendations 📌 https://loom.ly/8MErKB0