The new EU asylum laws: taking rights half-seriously

Abstract The EU has finally adopted comprehensive amendments to its asylum laws. To what extent are those changes compatible with human rights? This article examines this question by reference to the new laws on qualification, procedures, responsibility for asylum applications, reception and screening of asylum seekers, and resettlement of refugees, compared to the prior legislation (and case law). The main themes of the new laws are restraining movements of asylum seekers between Member States, coupled with further harmonization of the law. While the new Pact attempts to reach a compromise between immigration control and human rights, the article argues that such a compromise could prove to be uneasy and unstable.