In the context of the ongoing efforts at European Union (‘EU’) level aiming to manage
migration and asylum in its Member States, the European Commission (‘the Commission’) released a proposal for amending Regulation 2024/1348 as regards the establishment of a list of safe countries of origin at EU level. With this proposal, the Commission aims to amend the procedural part of the Asylum Procedure Regulation adopted by the European Parliament and the Council under the EU Pact on Asylum and Migration, that is set to start applying in June 2026.

Specifically, it aims to accelerate the examination, possibly already at the EU external
borders, of asylum applications from persons originating from ‘safe countries of origin’.
Among others, the proposal introduces a common list of safe countries of origin applicable at EU level where the Commission views there to be, in general terms, no risk of persecution or serious harm for individual applicants requesting asylum in the EU. This list comprises of the potential candidate country Kosovo, as well as Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, India, Morocco and Tunisia as other third countries. 

Several organisations and scholars find the proposal to present serious risks to the human rights of refugees as well as to undermine the legitimate concerns for the well documented human rights violations and persecutions in the listed countries.

Legal and policy background
Initially, the Commission wishes with its proposal to address the practical and legal challenges related to the application of the ‘safe country of origin’ concept introduced in the EU asylum acquis through the adoption of the Asylum Procedures Directive in 2005, as revised in 2013. At the moment, this concept is used by Member States to accelerate the examination of asylum claims when their country of origin is designated as safe, thereby f inding the application for international protection unfounded. 

While, in general, this practice has not been labelled as inconsistent with EU and international human rights law, it presents legal ambiguities and has been restricted, rejected and sanctioned by judicial authorities as the CJEU, ECtHR, and national courts. Furthermore, the ‘safe country of origin’ concept is divergently applied by Member States. These discrepancies have over time been critically reviewed and debated by international and regional bodies and independent organisations as the United Nations Refugee Agency (‘UNHCR’), the European Parliament, and the European Council on Refugees and Exiles (‘ECRE’), as well as by scholarly writings in peer-reviewed journals and blogs, mainly emphasising the need for individualised assessments in asylum proceedings.

Already in 2015, the Commission submitted a proposal for a Regulation establishing an EU common list of safe countries of origin, which was however not adopted due to political disagreements and concerns over human rights standards. This meant that there was no legal ground for a common list of safe countries of origin at EU level. What has changed is the adoption of the new Asylum Procedures Regulation (EU) 2024/1348. The 2024 Regulation allows Member States to apply the ‘safe country of origin’ concept, also in part or for specific groups of people, as a ground for inadmissibility, following a designation at both national and EU level in conjunction with specific assessment conditions pursuant to Articles 59 to 64. 

Against this new legal background, the Commission introduced in its proposal amendments to Article 62(1) to include an annexed common list of ‘safe countries of origin’. Such potential practice, especially in light of the serious human rights concerns emanating from the listed countries, should come with robust procedural and substantial guarantees concerning the fundamental rights of asylum seekers and the principle of non-refoulement, as already opined by the EU Fundamental Rights Agency (‘FRA’).

Critical voices
While the proposal must still undergo the ordinary legislative procedure, beginning by the Council’s Asylum Working Party discussions that have been taking place since 24 April 2025, several organisations and scholars already expressed their concerns over the proposal. CNCD 11.11.11, Euromed and the OMCT for instance expressed that adopting a common, binding list at EU level risks neglecting concerns raised by international bodies over the human rights violations and persecutions that people face in these third countries, undermining the right to asylum by assuming safety in light of persisting violations. Scholars opined that the proposal overturns established case law and parts from the designation assessment criteria under Article 61 of the Asylum Procedures Regulation.

The proposal opens the possibility for Member States to focus their efforts more on
accelerating examination procedures rather than ensuring their obligations and the rights of asylum seekers. A common list at EU level should not undermine, but come with specific guarantees regarding the basic principles and guarantees ensured under Chapter II of the Asylum Procedures Regulation such as the provisions on (access to) meaningful personal interviews, legal counselling, special procedural guarantees and the required medical examination and age assessment.