Public Opinion on Return and Readmission Policies in Europe: A Survey Catalogue and Thematic Analysis

Return and readmission (R&R) policies—encompassing voluntary return, forced removals, readmission agreements, and regularisation—are central to European migration governance. Yet, systematic knowledge about public attitudes toward these policies remains limited due to fragmented, inconsistent, and often inaccessible data. This article addresses this gap by cataloguing and analysing public opinion surveys conducted across Europe that include questions on R&R. Drawing on the MORE project’s conceptual framework, we identify 33 relevant surveys spanning 21 countries, examining their geographic and temporal coverage, accessibility, and thematic content. Our analysis reveals significant variation in country representation, with Germany, Spain, Italy, and Sweden most frequently surveyed. Thematic framing in existing instruments prioritises enforcement-oriented approaches—especially conditions under which deportation is acceptable—while alternatives such as regularisation or protection from removal are underrepresented. Moreover, survey questions rarely frame removal, inaction, and inclusion as interconnected policy options, constraining public deliberation of trade-offs. Methodological inconsistencies and limited public data access further hinder comparative research. We conclude by calling for more harmonised, inclusive, and publicly available survey instruments to better capture societal perspectives on R&R. This article provides a foundation for enhancing empirical research and evidence-based policymaking on one of Europe’s most contested areas of migration governance.

Return and readmission policies—such as voluntary return programmes, deportations, and regularisation schemes—play an important role in how European countries manage migration. However, we still know relatively little about what the public thinks about these policies. This is partly because survey data on the topic are scattered across different countries, use different methods, and are often difficult to access.

This article helps address this gap by identifying and analysing public opinion surveys conducted across Europe that include questions about return and readmission policies. Using the conceptual framework developed in the MORE project, we catalogue 33 surveys covering 21 European countries. We examine where and when these surveys were conducted, how accessible their data are, and what kinds of policy questions they ask.

Our analysis shows that some countries—especially Germany, Spain, Italy, and Sweden—are much more frequently surveyed than others. It also finds that most surveys focus on enforcement-oriented policies, particularly the circumstances under which deportation is considered acceptable. In contrast, alternatives such as regularisation or protection from removal receive far less attention. In addition, survey questions rarely present deportation, non-removal, and inclusion policies as connected options, which limits the public’s ability to consider trade-offs between different policy approaches.

Finally, differences in survey methods and limited access to data make it difficult for researchers to compare results across countries. We therefore call for more coordinated, transparent, and inclusive survey efforts to better understand public attitudes toward return and readmission policies. Improving the availability and design of such data will help strengthen research and support more informed policy debates about migration governance in Europe.