Greece recorded a sharp increase in migrant returns and a further decline in irregular arrivals during the first half of 2026, according to sources at the Ministry of Migration and Asylum.
Total returns rose by 20% compared with the same period a year earlier, the sources said, according to state-run news agency amna.gr.
Forced deportations increased by 41% to 1,292 in the January-June period, up from 915 in the first half of 2025.
Voluntary returns carried out through the International Organization for Migration rose to 870 from 740 a year earlier, while self-funded departures stood at 468, compared with 488 in the corresponding period of 2025.
At the same time, irregular sea arrivals fell by 27% year-on-year to 12,496 from 16,985, extending a broader downward trend following a 25% decline recorded in 2025, according to ministry sources.
Government officials also highlighted changes by nationality. Arrivals of Egyptian nationals fell by 72%, from around 2,800 to approximately 800 people, while returns of Egyptian citizens nearly quadrupled to 227 from 59 in the first half of last year.
For Pakistani nationals, arrivals and returns were nearly equal, with 180 arrivals and 169 returns recorded during the period.
Ministry sources attributed the trend to stronger cooperation with countries of origin and stricter implementation of return policies.
Officials also pointed to what they described as encouraging early results from the government’s “prison or return” policy. According to ministry data, 599 irregular migrants chose to return voluntarily to their countries of origin between February and July in order to avoid serving prison sentences.
Migration and Asylum Minister Thanos Plevris recently told parliament that migrants entering the country illegally do not have the right to remain if their asylum applications are rejected and should be returned to their countries of origin.
“The doctrine is prison or return” for those entering the country illegally, he said.
