MFF 2028-2034: Council agrees negotiating position on EU support for migration, border management and internal security
Today, the Council agreed its partial negotiating position on the regulations setting out the EU’s financial support for migration, border management and visas, and internal securityfor the period 2028 to 2034. These financial instruments will help member states implement the pact on migration and asylum, ensure efficient management of the EU’s external borders and visa processing, and fight internal security threats.
The three regulations provide the legal framework for EU support in these areas and form part of the EU’s overall budget for 2028 to 2034.
The negotiating position is ‘partial’ because it excludes financial envelopes and horizontal issues. These are currently being discussed as part of the overall negotiations on the next multiannual financial framework (MFF) covering the period 2028 to 2034.
Key elements of EU support
On migration and asylum, EU support will help strengthen the common European asylum system and promote legal migration, integration and social inclusion. It will ensure solidarity and fair sharing of responsibility between member states. Support will also contribute to effective, safe and dignified return with a focus on aspects going beyond border management, such as readmission and reintegration in non-EU countries, while helping to counter irregular migration.
When it comes to border management and visa, EU support will focus on promoting the efficient management of external borders and effective, safe and dignified return. It will also contribute to the efficiency of the visa policy, to the well-functioning of the Schengen area, and will help safeguard the free movement of persons.
On internal security, the key objectives are to better prevent and combat internal security threats, including serious and organised crime, terrorism, violent extremism and cybercrime; improve information exchange at Union level as well as with non-EU countries; intensify law enforcement cooperation and manage security-related incidents, risks and crises. A new objective will focus on enhancing the resilience of critical infrastructure against hostile acts.
As an important novelty compared to the EU’s long-term budget for 2021-2027, EU support for migration, border management and internal security will be delivered through national and regional partnership plans. Each member state will prepare one single comprehensive plan detailing their planned investments and reforms.
Within the national and regional partnership plans, member states will be able to respond to pressing needs and changes in policy and Union priorities and to steer funding towards actions with a high level of Union added value.
Council’s position
In its position, the Council gives member states additional flexibility in managing the funds available to maximise impact. Member states would not need to contribute to each of the objectives of Union support. Instead, they would focus on the most relevant ones, depending on their specific needs and challenges.
Changes were also made to ensure the legal soundness of the three regulations taking into account the legal particularities of EU action on migration, asylum, border management, internal security and judicial and police cooperation.
Next steps
The partial negotiating position approved today is the Council’s mandate to start negotiations with the European Parliament. The financial allocations for the three instruments for the period 2028-2034 will depend on the final agreement on the next MFF.
Background
On 16 July 2025, the European Commission proposed three sectoral regulations providing the legal framework for Union support on migration, border management and internal security for the period 2028-2034.
Since the proposed regulations are part of the package of proposals linked to the MFF, all the provisions in the text with budgetary implications or corresponding to the elements that form part of horizontal negotiations have been bracketed and excluded from the partial general approach, pending further progress on the MFF.
Following the European Commission’s initial proposals for the 2028–2034 period presented in July and September 2025, an EU agreement on the overall MFF before the end of 2026 would allow for the adoption of legislative acts in 2027, which is necessary to ensure that EU funding reaches beneficiaries without interruption from January 2028.
