Description

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Integration policies are at the forefront of EU and national debates. At the EU level, integration issues have gained extensive importance in the framework of the development of an EU migration policy. At the national level, discourses about failed integration policies have put integration policies under high pressure in political and legislative debates. Thereby, an interaction between the EU level and the national level can be observed. A general trend emerges where immigration and integration policies become increasingly interconnected. More precisely, migrants' access to a (stronger) legal status is becoming dependent on their level of integration. This book contains the updated outcomes of a conference where these interactions have been scrutinized. The first part demonstrates that several instruments are adopted at the EU level that frame the emergence of a European Integration Policy which has an effect on national policies. The second section outlines a trend in Member States to require third country nationals to fulfill integration obligations. If such a trend is fuelled by growing EU attention, EU rules may also limit their effect. Part three analyzes three national models as examples of integration policies with mandatory elements. The final part explores the effects of such integration requirements on the position of migrants: their integration and their residence rights.