On 4 December the European Parliament’s Civil Liberties Committee, meeting in Brussels, endorsed amendments that would insert an EU list of safe countries of origin (SCOs) into the 2024 Asylum Procedure Regulation. Bangladesh, Colombia, Egypt, Kosovo, India, Morocco and Tunisia would be on the initial roster, while EU accession candidates are presumed safe unless violence or sanctions raise red flags.
For Belgium—whose asylum caseload remains one of the EU’s highest per capita—the common list could accelerate low-risk files and free up capacity for more complex protection claims. Today the Belgian Immigration Office must conduct a full merits assessment for applicants from, say, India or Tunisia; once the new rules apply, those claims could be fast-tracked and decided within three months unless the applicant proves individual risk.
![MEPs draw up first EU-wide list of ‘safe countries of origin’ in asylum law overhaul]()
The text lets member states add national SCOs but prevents them from keeping a country on the list if the Commission suspends it—an important point for Belgium’s incoming coalition, which wants tighter but harmonised standards to avoid “asylum shopping”. The committee also insisted on real-time monitoring: the Commission would have to suspend a country’s safe status if asylum recognition rates exceed 20 % or if major rights abuses emerge.
Parliament will vote in plenary later this month. If negotiations with the Council conclude quickly, Belgium could begin applying accelerated procedures well before the June 2026 deadline when the broader Asylum Pact takes effect.
For Belgium—whose asylum caseload remains one of the EU’s highest per capita—the common list could accelerate low-risk files and free up capacity for more complex protection claims. Today the Belgian Immigration Office must conduct a full merits assessment for applicants from, say, India or Tunisia; once the new rules apply, those claims could be fast-tracked and decided within three months unless the applicant proves individual risk.
The text lets member states add national SCOs but prevents them from keeping a country on the list if the Commission suspends it—an important point for Belgium’s incoming coalition, which wants tighter but harmonised standards to avoid “asylum shopping”. The committee also insisted on real-time monitoring: the Commission would have to suspend a country’s safe status if asylum recognition rates exceed 20 % or if major rights abuses emerge.
Parliament will vote in plenary later this month. If negotiations with the Council conclude quickly, Belgium could begin applying accelerated procedures well before the June 2026 deadline when the broader Asylum Pact takes effect.
