Return - IOM Publications - International Organization for Migration

Return Migration: Policies and Practices
Under the Immigration Act, Article 77 bis, human trafficking is punishable with imprisonment
of one to five years. In addition to the penal sentence, traffickers have to pay a fine of EUR 500
to 25,000. Paragraphs 2 to 4 of Article 77 bis increase the sentences to 10 to 15 years imprisonment,
a fine of EUR 1,000 to 100,000 and the loss of civic rights in specific cases, such as
organized group activities.
1.3 ADMINISTRATIVE AND PROCEDURAL ARRANGEMENTS
Institutions Responsible for Involuntary Return
Under the responsibility of the Ministry of Interior, the Immigration Office, in cooperation with
the police, is responsible for implementing forced returns. A special unit within the Airport
Division of the Federal Police carries out all forced removals, with or without an escort.
Operational Steps for Involuntary Return
In the case of forced return of larger groups, the Belgian authorities mostly charter flights. Initially,
the Immigration Office chartered private aircrafts. After public and media discussions
about the use of charters, and difficulties encountered by the authorities in some cases, one of the
private airline companies concerned announced its decision to cease collaboration with the Belgian
authorities. Since then, only aircraft of the Belgian Air Force have been chartered.
Charter flights have been used since 1999 for the removal of illegal immigration, including
failed asylum seekers. The initial basis for the use of a charter flight was the necessity to remove
illegal aliens who, on a number of occasions, had refused to be removed on a commercial flight. 5
In 2002, there were 17 charter flights to Kosovo, Africa (Conakry, Guinea and Duala, Cameroon),
Macedonia/Turkey (a combined flight) and Romania. There have also been two joint charter
flights with the Netherlands to Kosovo. The organization of these flights was not the result of a
combined initiative, but of the offer made by the Dutch authorities to fill any remaining available
seats on their charters. Both the Belgian and the Dutch authorities provided escorts in these
cases.
Some carriers are less or not at all willing to cooperate, according to the company. For example,
SN Brussels Airlines refuses to take removed aliens on board its flights to Kinshasa. Air Algiers
only accepts one ordinary removal on Mondays and one escorted removal on Fridays. For airline
companies such as LOT, Tarom or Aeroflot, the presence of removed foreign nationals has become
part of their business.
Framework Agreements with Countries of Origin or Transit
Apart from the existing Benelux Agreements, Belgium has signed readmission agreements with
Poland, Slovenia, Romania, Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Croatia, Albania, Hungary,
Slovakia, Serbia and Montenegro and Ukraine.
The Readmission Agreements are based on a standard Benelux agreement module. The format
of this standard agreement has been changed lately, but still covers the same target group. The
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