The European Commission has announced that if Hungary does not pay the €200 million fine for stopping migration, it will deduct the amount from its frozen EU funds. In parallel with Brussels’ announcement, the European Court of Auditors is pressing for part of the blocked amount to be used to pay the fine.
The European Commission has again ordered Hungary to pay the €200 million fine imposed by the European Court of Justice by Sept. 17 at the latest; it must also pay €1 million a day as long as Hungary delays the implementation of EU rules.
Now, Brussels has announced that if Hungary does not pay, it will launch a so-called “set-off” procedure, deducting the amount from the EU funds due to Hungary, which have been frozen until now, according to a report from Euronews. The EU court has imposed an unprecedented fine on Hungary for not letting in illegal immigrants.
According to the June ruling, Hungary is being fined for blocking migrants at its border. In December 2020, the top EU court found that Hungary had “failed to respect EU law, “including in the area of procedures for granting international protection and returning third-country nationals who were illegally in the country.
According to the court, these infringements concerned restrictions on access to the procedure for international protection, the unlawful detention of applicants for such protection in transit zones, the violation of their right to remain in Hungary pending a final decision on an appeal against the rejection of their application, and the expulsion of these illegal migrants.
Hungary has retorted that the country has done nothing but protect its borders, including the EU’s external border, which has cost the Hungarian government at least €2 billion — a sum the EU has never contributed to.
According to Hungarian news outlet Mandiner, cabinet minister Gergely Gulyás recently made clear the Hungarian government’s position, stating that the head of the Ministry of the Interior and Justice is looking into the possibility that if Brussels continues to impose regulations that do not allow migrants to be detained, then all migrants at the Hungarian border will be offered voluntary and free transport to Brussels after complying with European procedures.
Earlier, György Bakondi, the prime minister’s chief adviser, made it clear that the Hungarian government will not change its migration policy despite the ruling.
