ABUJA, Nigeria / AfricaWire.IO / – The European Union and Nigeria have signed a readmission agreement aimed at speeding up the identification and return of people without legal residence rights. The deal also seeks to strengthen bilateral cooperation on migration and security. It was signed in Abuja on November 10 by Magnus Brunner, European Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration, and Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, during Brunner’s official visit.
According to the European Commission, the agreement sets out rapid and effective procedures for identifying and returning people who have no right to stay in Nigeria or in an EU member state. It is designed to facilitate return and readmission between the two sides, with obligations applying in both directions. It is the first readmission agreement between the EU and Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country.
Brunner described Nigeria as a key partner for Europe. He said both sides were turning dialogue into action through stronger security cooperation and better migration management. Nigeria’s Foreign Ministry said the agreement set out reciprocal obligations and protected the dignity and human rights of returnees. Reports in Nigeria stressed that the deal did not mean all Nigerians living in Europe faced removal. The signing took place during talks on migration and security in the Nigerian capital.
A decade of negotiations
The agreement follows around ten years of talks. The Council of the EU authorised the Commission to negotiate a readmission deal with Nigeria in September 2016. During Brunner’s visit, the two sides also launched a Senior Officials Dialogue on Migration and Security. The new forum is intended to strengthen bilateral coordination and cooperation on both issues, giving officials a regular channel for talks. Readmission talks with countries of origin often take years.
The agreement is not yet in force. It requires the consent of the European Parliament and must then be formally concluded by the Council of the EU. Only after those steps will its procedures for identification and return begin to apply. The deal forms part of wider EU efforts to increase the number of returns of people without legal residence rights, a priority for the Commission.
EU network of return deals grows
The EU currently has formal readmission agreements or practical arrangements on return and readmission with 24 countries. Such arrangements commit partner countries to help identify their nationals and accept them back once a return decision has been made. Readmission cooperation is a key element of the EU’s partnerships with countries of origin and transit. Frontex supported more than 33,000 returns from EU member states in the first half of 2026, up from about 30,000 a year earlier.
The deal adds to wider changes in EU migration policy. In June, EU negotiators reached a provisional agreement on tougher return rules and external return hubs, which would tighten procedures for removing people without a right to stay. Brunner, a former Austrian finance minister, took office as commissioner in December 2024. Nigeria is also an important EU partner on trade, energy and security. The European Parliament will now examine the agreement.