Romania Expelled 1,222 Irregular Migrants in 2023

In 2023, a total of 1,222 individuals from various countries were forcibly returned to their home countries from Romania, with approximately 400 of them being nationals from Bangladesh. According to Romanian immigration authorities, many of these individuals traveled through the Balkan route to reach Western European states, using Romania as a transit territory.

The country has seen a surge in the number of migrants using it as a transit territory, leading to an increase in deportations. In addition to the 400 individuals from Bangladesh, deportations included 104 people from Sri Lanka, 88 from India, 58 from Moldova, 52 from Egypt, 39 from Morocco, 32 from Vietnam, and three from Syria.

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Officials in Romania have been grappling with a large number of irregular migrants, leading to the use of deportation orders. Those who have lost their legal status receive notices asking them to return to their home countries. Failure to comply results in deportation, with a five-year ban from reaching all EU countries, the European Economic Area, and the Swiss Confederation.

Despite ongoing land border controls, Romania is set to partially join the Schengen Zone by air and sea in March. This means that third-country nationals with the right documents can leave the country without being subject to stricter controls compared to countries outside the Schengen Zone.

Meanwhile, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) reported a 33 percent increase in first asylum applicants in 2022, with the majority hailing from Ukraine, India, and Bangladesh. Additionally, in 2021, 23,000 new immigrants obtained a residence permit longer than 12 months in Romania, marking a 47.4 percent increase from the previous year.

Last year, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency recorded 380,000 detections of irregular border crossings at the EU’s main migratory routes, indicating the most significant increase since 2016.