5.4 Bilateral agreements

Bilateral agreements exist between states concerning returning migrants. The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the human rights of migrants has also provided that ‘to return migrants to a “safe” country – not necessarily the migrant’s country of origin – on the basis of readmission agreements can risk violating the prohibition of collective expulsions or the principle of non-refoulement if such decisions do not contain an individualized assessment of each migrant’s situation’ (A/HRC/47/30, para 64).