A Portuguese politician suggested that Lisbon is one of the countries which send back the fewest number of irregular migrants in the EU. But is this true?

Lisbon

A recent claim by Portugal's Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, stated that Portugal is one of the EU countries returning the fewest irregular migrants. Official Eurostat statistics confirm that, in the most recent available data, Portugal returned 85 irregular migrants, placing it near the bottom of the list, just above Slovakia and Slovenia. In contrast, France, Germany, and Spain returned the highest numbers, with France alone sending back nearly 4,000 individuals in the same period.

The trend is consistent across recent years, with France, Germany, and Cyprus leading in returns, while Luxembourg, Slovenia, and Slovakia consistently report the lowest figures. Overall, the EU has increased its efforts, with a 24.3% rise in returns of non-EU citizens compared to the previous year.

Fact check: Which EU country returns the most irregular immigrants?

Which EU country returns the most irregular migrants? Irregular migration is a hot topic in European politics at the moment and often gives rise to dubious claims, the latest of which has come from Portugal. Minister of the Presidency of Portugal, António Leitão Amaro, of the ruling centre-right Social Democratic Party, recently said that the Socialist Party failed to tackle irregular migration during its roughly eight years in government, between 2015 and 2024. He said that Portugal is one of the countries that returns the least illegal immigrants. But how do Portugal's returns figures compare to those of other EU countries? To find out, we can take a look at official Eurostat statistics, which log the third-country nationals returned following an order to leave each EU country every quarter. For example, the most recent data set including every EU member is Quarter 3 of 2024, which shows that Slovakia returned the fewest irregular migrants, having sent back 55 people, followed by Slovenia with 80 and then Portugal with 85. On the other side of the spectrum was France, having returned nearly 4,000 people, followed by Germany and Spain with just over 3,000 people each. It's a similar story every year. In Quarter 1 of 2025, France, Germany and this time Cyprus returned the most irregular immigrants, according to Eurostat, with Luxembourg, Slovenia and Slovakia bringing up the rear. Figures indicate the EU as a whole is ramping up efforts to clamp down on irregular immigration. Some 29,000 non-EU citizens were returned to a third country in Quarter 4 of 2024, representing an increase of 24.3% compared to the same period the year before.

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