Regulation (EC) No 862/2007 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 July 2007 on Community statistics on migration and international protection and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 311/76 on the compilation of statistics on foreign workers (Text with EEA relevance)
Date: 2007-07-11
Institutions: Council of the European Union, European Parliament
Subjects: EU statistics, emigration, foreign national, illegal migration, immigration, return migration, right of asylum

31.7.2007

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Official Journal of the European Union

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REGULATION (EC) No 862/2007 OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL

of 11 July 2007

on Community statistics on migration and international protection and repealing Council Regulation
(EEC) No 311/76 on the compilation of statistics on foreign workers

(Text with EEA relevance)

THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL OF THE EURO-
PEAN UNION,

Having regard to the Treaty establishing the European Commu-
nity, and in particular Article 285(1) thereof,

ensure the production of comprehensive statistics neces-
sary for the development of fair and effective Community
policies on migration. The resolution supports the Com-
mission’s plans to propose legislation for migration and
asylum statistics.

Having regard to the proposal from the Commission,

Having regard to the opinion of the European Economic and
Social Committee (1),

Acting in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 251
of the Treaty (2),

Whereas:

(1)

(2)

(3)

(4)

The conclusions of the Justice and Home Affairs Council
of 28-29 May 2001 considered, regarding common analy-
sis and the improved exchange of statistics on asylum and
migration, that there is a need for a comprehensive and
framework for future action on improving
coherent
statistics.

In April 2003, the Commission released a Communica-
tion to the Council and to the European Parliament, set-
ting out an Action Plan for the collection and analysis of
Community Statistics in the field of migration. This
included a number of important changes designed to
improve the completeness and degree of harmonisation of
these statistics. Under the Action Plan, the Commission
aimed to propose legislation on Community statistics on
migration and asylum.

The Thessaloniki European Council of 19 and 20 June
2003 concluded that more effective mechanisms were
needed for the collection and analysis of information on
migration and asylum in the European Union.

The European Parliament in its resolution of 6 November
2003 (3) on the abovementioned Communication from
the Commission noted that legislation was required to

(1) OJ C 185, 8.8.2006, p. 31.
(2) Opinion of the European Parliament of 14 March 2007 (not yet pub-
lished in the Official Journal) and Council Decision of 12 June 2007.

(3) OJ C 83 E, 2.4.2004, p. 94.

(5)

(6)

(7)

(8)

(9)

Enlargement of the European Union has brought an added
geographical and political dimension to the scale of the
phenomena associated with migration. It has also brought
a further impetus to the demand for accurate, timely and
harmonised statistical
information. There is also an
increasing need for statistical information regarding the
profession, education, qualifications and type of activity
of migrants.

Harmonised and comparable Community statistics on
migration and asylum are essential for the development
and monitoring of Community legislation and policies
relating to immigration and asylum, and to the free move-
ment of persons.

There is a need to reinforce the exchange of statistical
information on asylum and migration and to improve the
quality of Community statistical collections and outputs
which have, hitherto, taken place on the basis of a series
of ‘gentlemen’s agreements’.

It is essential that information be available, throughout the
European Union, for the purposes of monitoring the
development and implementation of Community legisla-
tion and policy. In the main, current practice does not suf-
ficiently ensure, in a uniform manner, regular, timely and
rapid delivery and dissemination of harmonised data.

This Regulation does not cover estimates of the number
of persons illegally resident in the Member States. Mem-
ber States should not provide such estimates or data on
such persons to the Commission (Eurostat), although they
may be included in population stocks due to surveys.

(10) Wherever possible, the definitions used for the purposes
of this Regulation are taken from the United Nations Rec-
ommendations on Statistics of International Migration, the
United Nations Recommendations for the Censuses of
Population and Housing in the ECE Region or EC legisla-
tion, and should be updated following the relevant
procedures.

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(11) New Community needs on statistics on migration and asy-
lum render obsolete the provisions of Council Regulation
(EEC) No 311/76 of 9 February 1976 on the compilation
of statistics on foreign workers (1).

(12)

Regulation (EEC) No 311/76 should therefore be repealed.

(13)

(14)

(15)

(16)

Since the objective of this Regulation to establish com-
mon rules for the collection and compilation of Commu-
nity statistics on migration and international protection
cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States and
can therefore, by reason of the scale of the action, be bet-
ter achieved at Community level, the Community may
adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of sub-
sidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty. In accor-
dance with the principle of proportionality, as set out in
that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is
necessary in order to achieve that objective.

Council Regulation (EC) No 322/97 of 17 February 1997
on Community Statistics (2) constitutes the reference
framework for the provisions of this Regulation. In par-
ticular, it requires conformity to standards of impartiality,
cost-
scientific
reliability, objectivity,
effectiveness and statistical confidentiality.

independence,

The measures necessary for the implementation of this
Regulation should be adopted in accordance with Council
Decision 1999/468/EC of 28 June 1999 laying down the
procedures for the exercise of implementing powers con-
ferred on the Commission (3).

In particular, the Commission should be empowered to
update the definitions, to decide on the groupings of data
and additional disaggregations and to lay down the rules
on accuracy and quality standards. Since those measures
are of general scope and are designed to amend non-
essential elements of this Regulation and to supplement it
by the addition of new non-essential elements, they should
be adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure
with scrutiny laid down in Article 5a of Decision
1999/468/EC.

(17)

The Statistical Programme Committee, established by
Council Decision 89/382/EEC, Euratom of 19 June 1989
establishing a Committee on the Statistical Programmes of
the European Communities (4), has been consulted in
accordance with Article 3 of that Decision,

(1) OJ L 39, 14.2.1976, p. 1.
(2) OJ L 52, 22.2.1997, p. 1. Regulation as amended by Regulation (EC)
the European Parliament and the Council

No 1882/2003 of
(OJ L 284, 31.10.2003, p. 1).

(3) OJ L 184, 17.7.1999, p. 23. Decision as amended by Decision

2006/512/EC (OJ L 200, 22.7.2006, p. 11).

(4) OJ L 181, 28.6.1989, p. 47.

HAVE ADOPTED THIS REGULATION:

Article 1

Subject matter

This Regulation establishes common rules for the collection and
compilation of Community statistics on:

(a)

immigration to and emigration from the Member State ter-
ritories, including flows from the territory of one Member
State to that of another Member State and flows between a
Member State and the territory of a third country;

(b)

the citizenship and country of birth of persons usually resi-
dent in the territory of the Member States;

(c) administrative and judicial procedures and processes in the
Member States relating to immigration, granting of permis-
sion to reside, citizenship, asylum and other forms of inter-
national protection and
illegal
immigration.

the prevention of

Article 2

Definitions

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following defini-

1.
tions shall apply:

(a)

(b)

(c)

‘usual residence’ means the place at which a person normally
spends the daily period of rest, regardless of temporary
absences for purposes of recreation, holiday, visits to friends
and relatives, business, medical treatment or religious pil-
grimage or,
in default, the place of legal or registered
residence;

‘immigration’ means the action by which a person estab-
lishes his or her usual residence in the territory of a Mem-
ber State for a period that is, or is expected to be, of at least
12 months, having previously been usually resident in
another Member State or a third country;

‘emigration’ means the action by which a person, having pre-
viously been usually resident in the territory of a Member
State, ceases to have his or her usual residence in that Mem-
ber State for a period that is, or is expected to be, of at least
12 months;

(d)

‘citizenship’ means the particular legal bond between an indi-
vidual and his or her State, acquired by birth or naturalisa-
tion, whether by declaration, choice, marriage or other
means according to national legislation;

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(e)

‘country of birth’ means the country of residence (in its cur-
rent borders, if the information is available) of the mother
at the time of the birth or, in default, the country (in its cur-
rent borders, if the information is available) in which the
birth took place;

(f)

‘immigrant’ means a person undertaking an immigration;

(g)

‘emigrant’ means a person undertaking an emigration;

(h)

‘long-term resident’ means long-term resident as defined in
Article 2(b) of Council Directive 2003/109/EC of 25 Novem-
ber 2003 concerning the status of third-country nationals
who are long-term residents (1);

(i)

(j)

‘third-country national’ means any person who is not a citi-
zen of the Union within the meaning of Article 17(1) of the
Treaty, including stateless persons;

‘application for international protection’ means application
for international protection as defined in Article 2(g) of
Council Directive 2004/83/EC of 29 April 2004 on mini-
mum standards for the qualification and status of third-
country nationals or stateless persons as refugees or as
persons who otherwise need international protection and
the content of the protection granted (2);

(k)

‘refugee status’ means refugee status as defined in Article 2(d)
of Directive 2004/83/EC;

(l)

‘subsidiary protection status’ means subsidiary protection sta-
tus as defined in Article 2(f) of Directive 2004/83/EC;

(m) ‘family members’ means family members as defined in
Article 2(i) of Council Regulation (EC) No 343/2003 of
18 February 2003 establishing the criteria and mechanisms
for determining the Member State responsible for examin-
ing an asylum application lodged in one of the Member
States by a third-country national (3);

(n)

‘temporary protection’ means temporary protection as
defined in Article 2(a) of Council Directive 2001/55/EC of
20 July 2001 on minimum standards for giving temporary
protection in the event of a mass influx of displaced per-
sons and on measures promoting a balance of efforts
between Member States in receiving such persons and bear-
ing the consequences thereof (4);

(o)

‘unaccompanied minor’ means an unaccompanied minor as
defined in Article 2(i) of Directive 2004/83/EC;

(p)

‘external borders’ means external borders as defined in
Article 2(2) of Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 of the Euro-
pean Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 estab-
lishing a Community Code on the rules governing the
movement of persons across borders (Schengen Borders
Code) (5);

(1) OJ L 16, 23.1.2004, p. 44.
(2) OJ L 304, 30.9.2004, p. 12.
(3) OJ L 50, 25.2.2003, p. 1.
(4) OJ L 212, 7.8.2001, p. 12.
(5) OJ L 105, 13.4.2006, p. 1.

(q)

(r)

(s)

‘third-country nationals refused entry’ means third-country
nationals who are refused entry at the external border
because they do not fulfil all the entry conditions laid down
in Article 5(1) of Regulation (EC) No 562/2006 and do not
belong to the categories of persons referred to in Article 5(4)
of that Regulation;

‘third-country nationals found to be illegally present’ means
third-country nationals who are officially found to be on the
territory of a Member State and who do not fulfil, or no
longer fulfil, the conditions for stay or residence in that
Member State;

‘resettlement’ means the transfer of third-country nationals
or stateless persons on the basis of an assessment of their
need for international protection and a durable solution, to
a Member State, where they are permitted to reside with a
secure legal status.

2. Member States shall report to the Commission (Eurostat)
on the use and probable effects of estimations or other methods
of adapting statistics based on national definitions to comply with
the harmonised definitions set out in paragraph 1.

3.
For the reference year 2008, the statistics supplied to the
Commission (Eurostat) under this Regulation may be based on
alternative (national) definitions. In such cases, Member States
shall notify the Commission (Eurostat) of
these alternative
definitions.

4.
If a Member State is not bound by one or more of the legal
texts referred to in the definitions in paragraph 1, statistics com-
parable with those required under this Regulation should be pro-
vided by that Member State where they can be provided under
existing legislative and/or administrative procedures.

Article 3

Statistics on international migration, usually resident
population and acquisition of citizenship

1. Member States shall supply to the Commission (Eurostat)
statistics on the numbers of:

(a)

immigrants moving to the territory of the Member State, dis-
aggregated as follows:

(i)

groups of citizenship by age and sex;

(ii) groups of country of birth by age and sex;

(iii) groups of country of previous usual residence by age

and sex;

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(b) emigrants moving from the territory of the Member State

disaggregated as follows:

2. Member States shall supply to the Commission (Eurostat)
statistics on the numbers of:

(i)

groups of citizenships;

(ii) age;

(iii) sex;

(a) persons covered by first instance decisions rejecting applica-
tions for international protection, such as decisions consid-
ering applications as inadmissible or as unfounded and
decisions under priority and accelerated procedures, taken
by administrative or judicial bodies during the reference
period;

(iv) groups of countries of next usual residence;

(c) persons having their usual residence in the Member State at
the end of the reference period, disaggregated as follows:

(b) persons covered by first instance decisions granting or with-
drawing refugee status, taken by administrative or judicial
bodies during the reference period;

(i)

groups of citizenship by age and sex;

(ii) groups of country of birth by age and sex;

(c) persons covered by first instance decisions granting or with-
drawing subsidiary protection status, taken by administra-
tive or judicial bodies during the reference period;

(d) persons having their usual residence in the territory of the
Member State and having acquired during the reference year
the citizenship of the Member State and having formerly held
the citizenship of another Member State or a third country
or having formerly been stateless, disaggregated by age and
sex, and by the former citizenship of the persons concerned
and by whether the person was formerly stateless.

The statistics referred to in paragraph 1 shall relate to ref-
2.
erence periods of one calendar year and shall be supplied to the
Commission (Eurostat) within 12 months of the end of the ref-
erence year. The first reference year shall be 2008.

Article 4

Statistics on international protection

1. Member States shall supply to the Commission (Eurostat)
statistics on the numbers of:

(a) persons having submitted an application for international
protection or having been included in such an application
as a family member during the reference period;

(b) persons who are the subject of applications for international
protection under consideration by the responsible national
authority at the end of the reference period;

(c) applications for international protection having been with-

drawn during the reference period.

These statistics shall be disaggregated by age and sex, and
by the citizenship of the persons concerned. They shall relate
to reference periods of one calendar month and shall be sup-
plied to the Commission (Eurostat) within two months of
the end of the reference month. The first reference month
shall be January 2008.

(d) persons covered by first instance decisions granting or with-
drawing temporary protection, taken by administrative or
judicial bodies during the reference period;

(e) persons covered by other first instance decisions granting or
withdrawing authorisation to stay for humanitarian reasons
under national
law concerning international protection,
taken by administrative or judicial bodies during the refer-
ence period.

These statistics shall be disaggregated by age and sex, and by the
citizenship of the persons concerned. They shall relate to refer-
ence periods of three calendar months and shall be supplied to
the Commission (Eurostat) within two months of the end of the
reference period. The first reference period shall be January to
March 2008.

3. Member States shall supply to the Commission (Eurostat)
statistics on the numbers of:

(a) applicants for international protection who are considered
by the responsible national authority to be unaccompanied
minors during the reference period;

(b) persons covered by final decisions rejecting applications for
international protection, such as decisions considering appli-
cations as inadmissible or as unfounded and decisions under
priority and accelerated procedures, taken by administrative
or judicial bodies in appeal or review during the reference
period;

(c) persons covered by final decisions granting or withdrawing
refugee status taken by administrative or judicial bodies in
appeal or review during the reference period;

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(d) persons covered by final decisions granting or withdrawing
subsidiary protection status taken by administrative or judi-
cial bodies in appeal or review during the reference period;

Article 5

Statistics on the prevention of illegal entry and stay

(e) persons covered by final decisions granting or withdrawing
temporary protection taken by administrative or judicial
bodies in appeal or review during the reference period;

(f) persons covered by other final decisions, taken by adminis-
trative or judicial bodies in appeal or review, granting or
withdrawing authorisations to stay for humanitarian reasons
under national law concerning international protection dur-
ing the reference period;

1. Member States shall supply to the Commission (Eurostat)
statistics on the numbers of:

(a)

third-country nationals refused entry to the Member State’s
territory at the external border;

(b)

third-country nationals found to be illegally present in the
Member State’s territory under national
laws relating to
immigration.

(g) persons who have been granted an authorisation to reside
in a Member State within the framework of a national or
Community resettlement scheme during the reference
period, where such a scheme is implemented in that Mem-
ber State.

The statistics under point (a) shall be disaggregated in accordance
with Article 13(5) of Regulation (EC) No 562/2006.

The statistics under point (b) shall be disaggregated by age and
sex, and by citizenship of the persons concerned.

These statistics shall be disaggregated by age and sex, and by the
citizenship of the persons concerned. They shall relate to refer-
ence periods of one calendar year and shall be supplied to the
Commission (Eurostat) within three months of the end of the ref-
erence year. The first reference year shall be 2008.

2.
The statistics referred to in paragraph 1 shall relate to ref-
erence periods of one calendar year and shall be supplied to the
Commission (Eurostat) within three months of the end of the ref-
erence year. The first reference year shall be 2008.

4. Member States shall supply to the Commission (Eurostat)
the following statistics on the application of Regulation (EC)
No 343/2003 and Commission Regulation (EC) No 1560/2003
of 2 September 2003 laying down detailed rules for the applica-
tion of Council Regulation (EC) No 343/2003 (1):

(a)

the numbers of requests for taking back or taking charge of
an asylum seeker;

(b)

the provisions on which the requests referred to in point (a)
are based;

(c)

the decisions taken in response to the requests referred to in
point (a);

(d)

the numbers of transfers to which the decisions referred to
in point (c) lead;

(e)

the number of requests for information.

These statistics shall relate to reference periods of one calendar
year and shall be supplied to the Commission (Eurostat) within
three months of the end of the reference year. The first reference
year shall be 2008.

Article 6

Statistics on residence permits and residence of
third-country nationals

1. Member States shall supply to the Commission (Eurostat)
statistics on:

(a)

the number of residence permits issued to persons who are
third-country nationals, disaggregated as follows:

(i) permits issued during the reference period whereby the
person is being granted permission to reside for the first
time, disaggregated by citizenship, by the reason for the
permit being issued and by the length of validity of the
permit;

(ii) permits issued during the reference period and granted
on the occasion of a person changing immigration sta-
tus or reason for stay, disaggregated by citizenship, by
the reason for the permit being issued and by the length
of validity of the permit;

(iii) valid permits at the end of the reference period (num-
ber of permits issued, not withdrawn and not expired),
disaggregated by citizenship, by the reason for the issue
of the permit and by the length of validity of the permit;

(1) OJ L 222, 5.9.2003, p. 3.

(b)

the number of long-term residents at the end of the refer-
ence period, disaggregated by citizenship.

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2. Where the national laws and administrative practices of a
Member State allow for specific categories of long-term visa or
immigration status to be granted instead of residence permits,
counts of such visas and grants of status are to be included in
the statistics required under paragraph 1.

3.
The statistics referred to in paragraph 1 shall relate to ref-
erence periods of one calendar year and shall be supplied to the
Commission (Eurostat) within six months of the end of the ref-
erence year. The first reference year shall be 2008.

(c)

for statistics required under Article 5(1)(a), disaggregations
by:

(i)

age;

(ii)

sex;

(d)

for statistics required under Article 5(1)(b), disaggregations
by:

Article 7

Statistics on returns

(i)

grounds for the apprehension;

(ii) place of the apprehension;

1. Member States shall supply to the Commission (Eurostat)
statistics relating to:

(a)

the number of third-country nationals found to be illegally
present in the territory of the Member State who are subject
to an administrative or judicial decision or act stating or
declaring that their stay is illegal and imposing an obliga-
tion to leave the territory of the Member State, disaggregated
by citizenship of the persons concerned;

(b)

the number of third-country nationals who have in fact left
the territory of the Member State, following an administra-
tive or judicial decision or act, as referred to in point (a), dis-
aggregated by the citizenship of the persons returned.

2.
The statistics referred to in paragraph 1 shall relate to ref-
erence periods of one calendar year and shall be supplied to the
Commission (Eurostat) within three months of the end of the ref-
erence year. The first reference year shall be 2008.

3.
The statistics referred to in paragraph 1 shall not include
third-country nationals who are transferred from one Member
State to another Member State under the mechanism established
by Regulations (EC) No 343/2003 and (EC) No 1560/2003.

Article 8

Additional disaggregations

The Commission may adopt measures relating to the defi-
1.
nition of additional disaggregations as set out below for the fol-
lowing statistics:

(a)

for statistics required under Article 4 as a whole, disaggrega-
tions by:

(i)

year of submission of the application;

(b)

for statistics required under Article 4(4), disaggregations by:

(e)

for statistics required under Article 6, disaggregations by:

(i)

year in which permission to reside was first granted;

(ii) age;

(iii) sex;

(f)

for statistics required under Article 7, disaggregations by:

(i)

reason for the decision or act imposing an obligation
to leave;

(ii) age;

(iii) sex.

2.
The additional disaggregations mentioned in paragraph 1
shall be supplied only separately, and not cross-classified with
the disaggregations required under Articles 4 to 7.

3. When deciding whether additional disaggregations are
required, the Commission shall consider the need for this infor-
mation for the purposes of developing and monitoring Commu-
nity policies and shall consider the availability of appropriate data
sources and the costs involved.

Negotiations on additional disaggregations that may be needed
for the application of Articles 4 to 7 shall be initiated not later
than 20 August 2009. The earliest reference year for the imple-
mentation of additional disaggregations shall be 2010.

Article 9

Data sources and quality standards

1.
The statistics shall be based on the following data sources
according to their availability in the Member State and in accor-
dance with national laws and practices:

(a)

records of administrative and judicial actions;

(i) number of persons concerned by the request, decision

and transfer;

(b)

registers relating to administrative actions;

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(c)

registers of the population of persons or of a particular sub-
group of that population;

(d) censuses;

(e)

sample surveys;

(f) other appropriate sources.

As part of the statistics process, scientifically based and well docu-
mented statistical estimation methods may be used.

2. Member States shall report to the Commission (Eurostat)
on the data sources used, the reasons for the selection of these
sources and the effects of the selected data sources on the qual-
ity of the statistics, and on the estimation methods used, and
shall keep the Commission (Eurostat)
informed of changes
thereto.

3.
At the request of the Commission (Eurostat), Member States
shall provide it with all the information necessary to evaluate the
quality, comparability and completeness of
the statistical
information.

4. Member States shall
inform the Commission (Eurostat)
without delay of revisions and corrections to the statistics sup-
plied under this Regulation, and of any changes in the methods
and data sources used.

5.
The measures relating to the definition of the appropriate
formats for the transmission of data shall be adopted in accor-
dance with the regulatory procedure referred to in Article 11(2).

Article 10

Implementing measures

1.
The measures necessary for the implementation of this
Regulation laying down the rules on the appropriate formats for
the transmission of data as provided for in Article 9 shall be
adopted in accordance with the regulatory procedure referred to
in Article 11(2).

2.
The following measures necessary for the implementation
of this Regulation and designed to amend its non-essential ele-
ments, inter alia, by supplementing it, shall be adopted in accor-
dance with the regulatory procedure with scrutiny referred to in
Article 11(3):

(b) defining the categories of groups of country of birth, groups
of country of previous and next usual residence and groups
of citizenship as provided for in Article 3(1);

(c) defining the categories of the reasons for the permit as pro-

vided for in Article 6(1)(a);

(d) defining the additional disaggregations and the levels of dis-
aggregations to be applied to the variables as provided for
in Article 8;

(e)

laying down the rules on accuracy and quality standards.

Article 11

Committee

1.
In adopting the implementing measures, the Commission
shall be assisted by the Statistical Programme Committee, estab-
lished by Decision 89/382/EEC, Euratom.

2. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5 and
Article 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, having regard to
the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

The period laid down in Article 5(6) of Decision 1999/468/EC
shall be set at three months.

3. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 5a(1)
to (4) and Article 7 of Decision 1999/468/EC shall apply, hav-
ing regard to the provisions of Article 8 thereof.

Article 12

Report

By 20 August 2012 and every three years thereafter, the Com-
mission shall submit a report to the European Parliament and
the Council on the statistics compiled pursuant to this Regula-
tion and on their quality.

Article 13

Repeal

Regulation (EEC) No 311/76 is hereby repealed.

Article 14

Entry into force

(a) updating the definitions set out in Article 2(1);

This Regulation shall enter into force on the 20th day following
its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.

Done at Strasbourg, 11 July 2007.

For the European Parliament
The President
H.-G. PÖTTERING

For the Council
The President
M. LOBO ANTUNES