The legal rights of irregular migrants: What are they and how do they vary across European countries?

• Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies
• MPC: Migration Policy Centre

The rights of migrants without legal authorisation to reside in host countries are politically contested. How, then, do European governments respond to the conflicting demands of guaranteeing the fundamental rights of all persons and enforcing immigration laws and controls?

In this webinar, Clare Fox-Ruhs and Joakim Palme will present their latest study, which introduces the first systematic comparative analysis of the social and labour rights of irregular migrants in the laws of 28 European countries. Drawing from the new IRMIGRIGHT database, the authors will discuss the results of a novel set of indicators that measure the rights of irregular migrants in ‘capabilities’ terms.

The indicators developed from the IRMIGRIGHT data reveal substantial cross-national differences in how European governments legislate for the rights of irregular migrants. The study also identifies a hierarchy of rights that states choose to protect, and brings to light key barriers to protection—raising important questions for future policy development and reform.