A total of 10,098 irregular migrants who had been staying in Cyprus were returned to their country of origin in 2024, the police said on Friday.

Additionally, the police said, a total of 271 migrants were repatriated between January 9 and Wednesday, with a further 170 people repatriated on Thursday.

The police said these people were repatriated following a “new large-scale operation carried out by members of the police”.

They added that these repatriations form part of “the intensive efforts made by the police to ensure the return of third country nationals to their countries of origin, through voluntary and forced repatriations”.

Cyprus’ prolificness in repatriating irregular migrants to their countries of origin has caught the eye of the European Union, with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen saying the country has “made good progress” on the matter during a visit to Paphos in October.

Her words echoed those of former European Commission vice president for promoting the European way of life Margaritis Schinas, who had last year described Cyprus as an “emerging European champion of migrant returns”.

He had added that “as a result of the very serious work that is being done in Cyprus … I think we can say, while avoiding triumphalism, that Cyprus has reached the end of the tunnel. In other words, immigration management is on a much more stable footing.”

On the matter of migration, 2024 was also a year in which the EU’s 27 member states signed a new pact on migration, effectively redesigning the bloc’s migration system.

The redesign consists of 10 separate pieces of legislation, all of which were passed by the European parliament during a late-night session in April. It provides for a stricter and more unified approach across the bloc to the processing and settling of asylum seekers.

Included in the legislation are provisions for “solidarity” between member states, which includes the voluntary taking on of asylum seekers by states which have the ability to do so, as well as providing financial contributions and operational and technical support.

There are also provisions to help EU countries manage surges in migrant flows, as well as screening of third country nationals upon their entry to the EU, with identity checks, biometric data collection and other checks. This process could take up to seven days.

In addition, regulations regarding the Eurodac database will be altered, allowing for the fingerprints and photographs of those entering the EU illegally to be stored indefinitely.

There are also provisions for faster processing of asylum claims and more watertight rules on asylum claims, as well as uniform reception standards for asylum seekers in terms of housing, schooling, and healthcare.

The European Commission’s director-general for migration and home affairs Corina Ullrich visited Cyprus to check on progress towards implementing the pact in September, and said the country has already done “a great deal of work” which “some other member states now need to start” in terms of infrastructure.

She did, however, note that there were some areas where the island requires improvement, including matters such as better health vulnerability checks on incoming migrants, resolving issues related to unaccompanied minors, and clearing its backlog of asylum claims.

She said the implementation of the redesign’s various stipulations within two years is “a very difficult task” for all member states.

“Although the pact consists mostly of regulations, there is a lot to be done and infrastructure to be prepared and staff to be in place,” she said.

Speaking on the matter of the pact’s text, she said Cyprus is “on a very good path” on six of its 10 points, but that the remaining four “need a lot of work”.