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Frontex Reports 26% Drop in Irregular EU Entries in 2025, Lowest Since 2021

The agency credits closer cooperation with non‑EU partners for the decline, with routes remaining volatile.

Overview

  • Authorities logged about 178,000 registered irregular crossings last year, down a quarter from 2024 and less than half the 2023 level.
  • The central Mediterranean stayed the main corridor with 66,328 detections, a figure roughly unchanged from the prior year.
  • Frontex cited steep declines on several routes, including West Africa down 63%, the West Balkans down 42%, and detections along the Belarus border down 37%.
  • Flows shifted elsewhere, with crossings from eastern Libya to Crete more than tripling and the western Mediterranean route rising about 14%.
  • Frontex flagged ongoing risks as the EU prepares its Migration and Asylum Pact for full implementation in June 2026 to expand coordinated operations and faster border procedures.