European Union institutions have agreed on the bloc’s first-ever EU-wide list of “safe countries of origin,” a move that could also apply to EU accession candidates such as Georgia, potentially complicating access to international protection for Georgian asylum seekers amid the country’s anti-democratic turn.
On December 18, negotiators from the Danish presidency of the Council of the European Union and the European Parliament reached a provisional agreement on the new framework that would designate Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, India, Kosovo, Morocco, and Tunisia as “safe countries.” While Georgia is not explicitly named, the document says the list will also include EU candidate countries, unless specific exceptions apply. Georgia became an EU candidate country in December 2023.
Those exceptions include situations where international or internal armed conflict is taking place, where the EU has adopted “restrictive measures” against a country “in questions related to fundamental rights and freedoms,” or where the asylum application recognition rate exceed 20% when assessed by member state authorities.
The provisional agreement still requires formal approval by both the Council and Parliament. If confirmed, the EU-wide list is set to apply from June 12, 2026.
The agreement follows efforts to establish a more unified EU-wide asylum policy, with the designation allowing for accelerated asylum procedures for citizens of the listed countries, potentially reducing their chances of securing international protection.
“The new rules on the application of the safe third country concept will help Member States process asylum applications more swiftly, reduce pressure on asylum systems, and reduce incentives for illegal migration to the EU, while preserving the legal safeguards for applicants and ensuring respect of fundamental rights,” the EU Commission said on December 18, welcoming the provisional agreement.
But the decision also comes amid Georgia’s rapid anti-democratic turn, which has drawn criticism and prompted specific responses from Brussels.
In its annual visa suspension report published on December 19, the European Commission warned of “appropriate measures” amid Georgia’s failure to meet key benchmarks, including regarding the human rights situation. The measures would cover suspension of visa-free travel for diplomatic passport holders first, with the restriction potentially extending to the entire population later.
With 14,530 asylum requests in the EU in 2024, the report also marked Georgia among the countries from where the number of asylum applications “decreased considerably” compared to 2023, but “nevertheless remained at considerable levels.” Official statistics show EU-wide recognition rates for first-instance decisions for Georgian citizens at around 4% in 2024 and the first half of 2025.
The plan was criticised in the European Parliament and also by international advocacy groups.
“We are discussing here democratic backsliding taking place in Georgia, but the Commission, Council, and Parliament are talking about adding Georgia to the safe countries list,” Cecilia Strada, MEP from the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, told the European Parliament on December 17 during the debates about “Deepening Democratic Crisis” in Georgia. “What’s being done by the government in Georgia is brutal torture, arrests, repression of opposition, criminalization of the media,” Strada added.
Amnesty International warned on December 18 that the EU’s new rules would risk undermining international refugee protections, with Olivia Sundberg Diez, Amnesty’s EU advocate on migration and asylum, calling the move a “shameless attempt to sidestep international legal obligations.”
“Changes to the ‘safe third country’ concept will mean that people seeking asylum in the EU may see their applications rejected without review,” Sundberg Diez said.
Georgia has been designated as a “safe country” by some individual EU member states, including Germany, where it was added in 2023. The designation, however, has been debated and questioned by local courts.
Also in 2023, Belgium removed Georgia from the list of safe countries, while Sweden, another EU country, removed Georgia from a similar list in January 2025.
Also Read:
- 13/11/2025 – ‘Too Late’: Khangoshvili Family Case Highlights Shift in German Deportation Policy
- 22/03/2025 – German Court Questions Georgia is as Safe Country of Origin for Asylum Seekers
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