28 April 2026
Invisible by Design
The EU AI Act will fail to adequately protect trans asylum seekers because it regulates system outputs while the harm lies in the binary assumptions that make their exclusion appear technically compliant. When the Act’s high-risk regime becomes fully applicable on August 2nd, 2026, AI systems for automated decision-making in migration and asylum processes will need to meet stricter compliance requirements. This is an advance in regulatory and constitutional accountability under the EU Charter. It nonetheless leaves untouched the administrative architecture the Act takes for granted. Continue reading >>
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06 February 2026
A Draconian Return System
Unless the European Parliament puts up a fight to eliminate or amend the worst parts of the currently circulating draft regulation on a “common system for the return of third-country nationals staying illegally in the Union”, which looks unlikely, the EU may soon adopt a new approach. This draft regulation shows how far the EU has shifted towards positions of the far right, and how little it is interested in human rights and pragmatic solutions for rejected asylum seekers and other non-EU migrants. Continue reading >>
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03 December 2025
Biometric Technologies, Frontex and Fundamental Rights
Biometric data qualifies as particularly sensitive personal data under the GDPR, and its processing must meet strict legal requirements. Frontex’s exploration of novel biometric technologies, including DNA profiling and vein recognition, raises concerns in the absence of demonstrated necessity or proportionality. Such developments require prior Fundamental Rights and Data Protection Impact Assessments. Overall, the legal and technical prerequisites for expanding the use of these technologies, particularly in light of interoperability challenges and fundamental rights protections, are not yet sufficiently established. Continue reading >>
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28 November 2025
Undermining Asylum Protection Through Administrative Shortcuts
What happens to transparency and the rights of asylum seekers when a government takes an administrative shortcut? As Constantin Hruschka argued on this blog, Germany is dismantling access to asylum in everyday practice while leaving the law itself formally intact: Asylum remains a symbolic guarantee, yet administrative measures systematically block meaningful access. One illustration of this is the German government’s recent legislative proposal to designate “safe countries of origin” (SCO) via executive decree (Rechtsverordnung) rather than through Parliament. Continue reading >>
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04 September 2025
Disapplication Unbound
Legal scholars welcomed the Apace ruling by the CJEU as a “total victory” for liberals supporting human rights and the independence of the judiciary. But the ruling has two central faut lines: it fails to acknowledge that Article 37 APD is not unconditional: its direct effect is, at best, dubious. Second, in Member States like Italy, where the judiciary makes extensive use of disapplication in asylum matters, the laissez-faire approach of the CJEU paves the way for legal uncertainty and exposes judges to populist attacks. Continue reading >>15 July 2025
The End of an (Unlawful) Era
On June 17th, the Danish Supreme Court delivered an important judgement concerning the principle of non-penalization of refugees, ending decades of unlawful prosecutorial practices. A closer reading points to longstanding deficiencies in informing asylum seekers of their rights during the procedure. Moreover, questions remain regarding the interpretation of Article 31 for beneficiaries of subsidiary protection. Continue reading >>
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16 June 2025
Whose Values?
Value-based reasoning features prominently in CJEU case law, most recently in AG Ćapeta’s opinion in Commission v. Hungary. However, what is treated as absolute within the Union turns flexible and conditional in cases concerning asylum, integration, as well as anti-discrimination. A closer look at the “feminist” cases (WS, K and L, and AH and FN) reveals how “Western values”-centred reasoning is deployed at the Member State level and re-elaborated by the CJEU as the fundamental value of gender equality – opening the door to ideological reinterpretations. Continue reading >>
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06 June 2025
“The Rule of Law Depends on Administration With Integrity”
Five Questions to Till Patrik Holterhus Continue reading >>
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15 January 2025