Meeting in London on 22 October 2025, heads of government from the Western Balkans, the UK, Germany and other EU states agreed to launch a Joint Migration Task Force (JMTF) under the Berlin Process framework. The chair’s conclusions highlight irregular migration through the Balkans as a shared challenge and praise German support for harmonising visa regimes with EU standards.
Germany—originator of the Berlin Process in 2014—pledged continued technical assistance and data-sharing via FRONTEX to strengthen biometric border checks along the so-called Balkan Route. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, who attended the parallel Interior Ministers’ Track, called the JMTF “an upstream shield that reduces pressure on German borders without undermining freedom of movement within the EU.”
Leaders also endorsed measures to curb ‘visa-shopping’, whereby travellers exploit visa-free access to Western Balkan states to enter the EU. Under the new plan, border police will pilot real-time exchange of travel-history data, and Germany’s Federal Police College will host joint training on document-fraud detection starting January 2026.
Business implications are mixed. Tighter upstream screening could lower sudden influxes that overwhelm German municipalities, but companies that post staff to the region may face more rigorous entry checks and will need to monitor local implementation of uniform visa lists. The summit nevertheless reaffirmed commitments to mutual recognition of professional qualifications and portability of social-security rights—both crucial for intra-company transferees.
The UK announced £1 million for assisted voluntary-return programmes, while Germany signalled that development-aid funds would be linked to progress on migration cooperation. Multinationals should expect closer scrutiny of labour-hire chains in the Balkans and earlier engagement from German immigration authorities when staff travel along the route.
Germany—originator of the Berlin Process in 2014—pledged continued technical assistance and data-sharing via FRONTEX to strengthen biometric border checks along the so-called Balkan Route. Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, who attended the parallel Interior Ministers’ Track, called the JMTF “an upstream shield that reduces pressure on German borders without undermining freedom of movement within the EU.”
Leaders also endorsed measures to curb ‘visa-shopping’, whereby travellers exploit visa-free access to Western Balkan states to enter the EU. Under the new plan, border police will pilot real-time exchange of travel-history data, and Germany’s Federal Police College will host joint training on document-fraud detection starting January 2026.
Business implications are mixed. Tighter upstream screening could lower sudden influxes that overwhelm German municipalities, but companies that post staff to the region may face more rigorous entry checks and will need to monitor local implementation of uniform visa lists. The summit nevertheless reaffirmed commitments to mutual recognition of professional qualifications and portability of social-security rights—both crucial for intra-company transferees.
The UK announced £1 million for assisted voluntary-return programmes, while Germany signalled that development-aid funds would be linked to progress on migration cooperation. Multinationals should expect closer scrutiny of labour-hire chains in the Balkans and earlier engagement from German immigration authorities when staff travel along the route.
