The European Commission said Italy was still rejecting transfer requests from other EU countries at the end of September, despite being identified as responsible for the asylum cases. The dispute over returns risks adding pressure to Schengen’s passport-free travel area, where governments have responded to migration concerns with internal border controls.
A Commission document released on Friday, 6 November, said requests made by other member states were still being rejected between 12 June and 30 September 2026. It also reported cases in which Italian authorities returned people to the countries seeking to transfer them, even though Italy had been deemed responsible for their cases.
Italy had resumed transfers by 29 October, according to an administrative letter cited by the Commission. But the Commission said it could not establish whether anyone had actually departed for Italy.
The dispute recalls Italy’s decision over the summer to impose border controls on Spain, amid fears that people who had entered the Spanish enclave of Ceuta would reach continental Europe. Italy has for years allowed people to leave without first registering them, a practice that has angered other EU states. Many travel through France towards northern Europe.
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