Author: Wojciech Dzięgiel

It is no coincidence that the Government of the Republic of Poland published the new Migration Strategy for 2025–2030 (hereinafter referred to as the Migration Strategy), adopted by the resolution of the Council of Ministers of 15 October 2024, six months after the European Union adopted a set of nine legal acts known as the Pact on Migration and Asylum. Poland opposed many of the legal acts proposed under the Pact both during the negotiations (2020–2023) and remains opposed to them after their adoption by a qualified majority in the Council of the EU.

Poland’s Migration Strategy remains aligned with the assumptions of the EU Pact on Migration and Asylum, as it were, in the discourse. The Polish proposal does not a priori assume addressing the migratory pressures that have been increasing for many years, but rather proposes controlling, and in some cases even limiting, the influx of migrants. The announcement of the Migration Strategy also aligns with the European Commission’s work on the new Visa Strategy, which is scheduled for release at the end of 2025. While it is intended to set trends in visa policy, it is worth noting that in the first half of 2024, approximately 25% of applications for international protection in European Union countries were submitted by applicants who entered the Schengen area under visa-free travel. Visa liberalization, or the lack thereof, therefore directly impacts asylum policy and should be considered one of its key elements.

The policy paper is available in Polish.

Author: Wojciech Dzięgiel, Member of the Board, Casimir Pulaski Foundation