UK-Germany Joint Action Plan on Irregular Migration (accessible)
Published 10 December 2024
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-germany-joint-action-plan-irregular-migration/uk-germany-joint-action-plan-on-irregular-migration-accessible
Home Office
Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community
December 2024
Overview – a strengthened partnership
The United Kingdom and the Federal Republic of Germany (‘UK’ and ‘Germany’) are key allies and partners in the field of co-operation to address irregular migration. The fight to save lives in the Channel and disrupt the migrant smuggling trade, as well as the whole range of organised criminality which underpins it, is a shared one. Co-operation – between our law enforcement and Ministries – is critical in responding to these challenges.
The joint action plan on irregular migration is a new framework for our future relationship: it will deliver a strengthened partnership which will in turn deliver more secure borders and increased action against those organised crime groups who seek to undermine our respective border security. This enhanced partnership displays our shared leadership and commitment to secure borders – as Calais Group partners and European allies.
The joint action plan sets out how we will enhance our bilateral, European, and wider regional co-operation in responding to the challenges of irregular migration, migrant smuggling and the organised criminality behind it. It brings together partners across UK and German systems to resolve barriers to enhanced operational co-operation, increase our shared expertise and maximise our response to the challenges we face today – and will face in the future.
Overarching aims of the plan
1. break the business model of organised crime groups involved in migrant smuggling and trafficking of persons by:
- disrupting their supply chains
- preventing irregular border crossings
- ensuring smugglers face the full extent of the law
2. reduce irregular migratory flows into Germany, the UK and Europe
3. prevent loss of life on migratory routes and in the Channel
4. increase the returns of individuals with no right to be in the UK or Germany
5. strengthen European co-operation on transnational organised crime involved in migrant smuggling and trafficking of persons
6. maximise UK and German relationships with key regional partners to combat transnational organised crime involved in migrant smuggling and trafficking of persons
What the plan does
The joint action plan:
1. delivers a long-term framework for enhanced co-operation on irregular migration and combatting organised crime involved in migrant smuggling and trafficking of persons
2. strengthens operational capabilities of UK and German law enforcement to tackle the challenge of migrant smuggling, the trafficking of persons, and the organised crime groups involved through criminal investigations and prosecutions
3. cements the UK and Germany’s commitment to working with European and regional partners on irregular migration
4. strengthens the UK and Germany’s focus in Europol on tackling the whole end-to-end routes of criminal migrant smuggling networks and the illicit finances involved in migrant smuggling
5. establishes the first international liaison into the Border Security Command (BSC) and strengthens UK and German alignment on systems leadership and policy
Delivering the plan
The coordinators for implementing the joint action plan will be the Border Security Command of the Home Office for the UK and the Directorate for International and EU Affairs of the Federal Ministry of the Interior and Community (BMI) for Germany. To the extent EU agencies are concerned, the implementation of the joint action plan will also be subject to EU law and steering by the relevant agencies’ management boards.
The joint action plan will cover an initial period of 12 months from December 2024 to December 2025. The objectives will be reviewed and refreshed annually.
These revisions, as well as monitoring of the joint action plan to ensure effective implementation, will be done through operational engagement, ad-hoc dialogue between the Ministries and a bi-annual sub-group of the UK-Germany Home Affairs Dialogue (HAD).