Brussels launches a five-year strategy for migration and asylum and calls on Austria to expedite implementation
On January 29, 2026, the European Commission announced the launch of a comprehensive European strategy for managing migration and asylum affairs, extending until 2031, alongside the European visa strategy, in a move aimed at defining the political and legislative priorities of the European Union over the next five years and guiding the legislative work related to the Migration and Asylum Pact and the amended Schengen Border Code.
The strategy was presented in German by the Commission's representation in Vienna, giving it a special dimension in Austria, which is one of only two countries in the Schengen area that still impose internal border controls with three neighboring countries. The plan gains additional political sensitivity in Vienna due to its direct impact on border, asylum, and labor market policies.
In the middle of the news, informed sources reported that the European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Magnus Brunner, an Austrian national, confirmed that the main goal of the strategy is to keep the numbers of irregular entries consistently low while enhancing regular migration to fill the skills gap within the member states. Social partner organizations in Austria called for the swift transformation of this plan into national legislation, allowing for the gradual phasing out of temporary and costly border control measures, especially at the Brenner Pass and on the border with Hungary.
The new strategy includes several key measures, including the advance provision of European funding to improve the infrastructure for receiving asylum seekers, the establishment of mandatory screening mechanisms, and rapid procedures for the return of rejected asylum seekers at the external borders of the Union, along with a special recommendation to attract talent aimed at facilitating long-term residence permits for researchers and entrepreneurs. This recommendation intersects with the Austrian plan aimed at digitizing the procedures for the Red-White-Red Card. The European plan also indicates the necessity for member states to ensure the submission of electronic applications for long-term residence visas by 2028 and to expedite the recognition of professional qualifications, which could positively impact multinational companies operating regional headquarters from Vienna by facilitating the movement of their managers from outside the EU within its member states.
The Austrian parliament is expected to witness an intensive discussion in February regarding the plan, especially concerning the burden-sharing among member states. In this context, the Austrian Chamber of Commerce has urged the government to focus on attracting talents, warning that the information technology sector in Austria alone may face a shortage of up to 24,000 specialists by 2027.