Brussels, June 3 (LaPresse) – A third-country national who enters the European Union illegally cannot be punished for facilitating illegal entry solely because they are accompanied by their underage child. That parent is simply exercising their responsibility toward the minor. This was established by the EU Court in a preliminary ruling request from the Bologna Court, which asked whether such conduct constituted the offense of aiding illegal entry under EU law.
The Luxembourg Court clarified that a person who violates border crossing regulations by bringing minors — for whom they have actual parental responsibility — into the EU territory is not guilty of aiding illegal immigration. Instead, this act is seen as the fulfillment of their familial responsibilities.
EU law, therefore, precludes a national law that criminalizes this behavior. The case stems from an incident in August 2019, when a third-country national arrived at Bologna airport with her daughter and niece, both minors and citizens of the same country. They used false passports. The woman was arrested and charged with aiding illegal entry.
She stated that she fled her home country because she and her family were under death threats from her ex-partner.
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