Reaching Irregular Migrants in Europe: Harnessing the Value of Counselling

Connecting with and providing counselling to irregular migrants, especially those living on the streets or in transit, is crucial for addressing irregular migration. Yet it remains a challenging and underexplored area, due in part to the difficulty engaging with a population often living in precarity and avoiding contact with authorities due to fear of deportation or past negative experiences. A pervasive lack of trust coupled with a concealed lifestyle often prevents irregular migrants in Europe from accessing critical information about existing services, pathways to regularization, and voluntary return options. As a result, many remain unaware of the support available to help them exit irregularity.

In recent years, various stakeholders have sought to strengthen outreach and counselling for irregular migrants, whether to encourage voluntary return, provide information on regularization, or raise awareness about access to services. However, the fragmented nature of these initiatives, combined with a lack of evidence on their effectiveness, highlights the need for greater collaboration and dialogue.

This webinar brings together policymakers, practitioners, and other experts to explore the value of outreach and counselling to irregular populations and the policy goals and approaches used. The conversation includes key findings from an MPI Europe brief, offering valuable insights into challenges for those involved in outreach and counselling activities aimed at irregular migrants. The brief offers some recommendations as well as a proposed framework to advance the knowledge base in the field.

The conversation also discusses the first steps towards a more solid evidence base made under the Reaching Undocumented Migrants (RUM) project carried out by the Return and Reintegration Facility (RRF), an EU-funded entity that supports EU Member States and other Schengen countries as they seek to increase the effectiveness of their return and reintegration programming. The RUM project aims to develop and promote evidence-based tools, datasets, and processes that can be used by a wide European community of practice to improve outreach to irregular migrants within the European Union.

Speakers include:

• Jan Braat, Senior Policy Advisor, Migration, Diversity, and Integration, Municipality of Utrecht, the Netherlands
• Giulia Bruschi, Data and Research Project Manager Europe, Mixed Migration Centre
• Christina Jespersen, Senior Project Manager, Return and Reintegration Facility
• Jeroen Vandekerckhove, Head of International Relations, Fedasil, Belgium
• Moderator: María Belén Zanzuchi, Policy Analyst, Migration Policy Institute Europe