The government has suggested a bill to streamline return operations and ensure that people who have received a removal order return to their home country.
The changes to the law are proposed to come into force as early as April 1, 2025, and it has a parallel with Donald Trump’s crackdown on criminal migrants entering the US from or via Mexico.
The incentives for a foreigner to remain in Sweden after a removal order should be minimized. The government, therefore, proposes in its bill that:
- A removal order shall be valid for 5 years from the time the alien has left the country or longer if there is a re-entry ban
- It will be possible to issue a more extended re-entry ban than at present if a foreign national has not left the country when the deadline for voluntary departure has expired.
The government also wants to abolish the system of so-called track changes, i.e. the possibility of applying for a residence permit for work from within the country after a decision to reject an asylum application.
Ludvig Aspling, migration policy spokesperson for the Sweden Democrats, says the rule that deportation decisions expire after only four years will also be removed and replaced by a rule that will force more people to return home.
”Sweden has had weak rules for return for decades, which is a crucial step to change that. The so-called track change, which has undermined regulated immigration, will be abolished.
Minister for Migration Johan Forssell says these proposals reduce the incentives for people to remain in Sweden after a deportation decision.
”Today, about one in four asylum seekers has already heard their case. The fact that those who have received a deportation order also leave the country is crucial for confidence in our migration system.”
Source: Preskription av avlägsnandebeslut och vissa frågor om återreseförbud, Swedish Government
