Ryazantsev S.V., Khramova M N., Tyshkevich A.I. EU migration policies during the COVID-19 pandemic: convergence or distancing? Bulletin of KazNU. International Relations and International Law Series, [S.l.], 2022, v. 99, no. 3, p. 4-14.

Abstract

This paper examines some aspects of the migration policy of the EU countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. The coronavirus pandemic has affected all spheres of society without exception, including a large-scale decrease in the mobility of the population in all countries of the world. The purpose of this work is to analyze the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic for the EU countries in the field of internal and international migration and the implementation of migration policy. The study is based on official data from Eurostat, the International Organization for Migration, the International Labour Organization, analytical reports and legal documents of the European Union as a whole, as well as individual states. Analytical and comparative methods are used in the work. As part of the analytical method, a meaningful analysis of some regulatory documents in the field of migration policy aimed at reducing the risks of the spread of coronavirus infection, social and legal support for certain categories of foreign citizens residing in the EU countries is carried out. The comparative method makes it possible to compare the tools and mechanisms for implementing individual migration policy measures during the pandemic in a number of EU countries and identify the most successful practices. Our research has shown that, on the one hand, a number of measures taken at the EU level have shown their effectiveness in restoring mobility and ensuring unhindered movement in the EU. On the other hand, the EU member states had fairly broad powers in matters of self-regulation of migration within their own country, focusing primarily on national interests. The results obtained in this work can be further used, firstly, for effective migration management tools in the event of global shocks, and secondly, for the purpose of a deeper study of the possibilities and limitations of the implementation of migration policy by states that are members of integration associations.