Hungary refuses to pay fines for breaking EU asylum rules

Following the Hungarian government's refusal to pay a sizable fine for breaching the bloc's asylum rules, the EU has started the process of reclaiming hundreds of millions of euros designated for Budapest in a notable escalation of hostilities between Hungary and the European Union. With major financial consequences, this action emphasizes the continuous conflict between Hungarian nationalist policy and EU legislation.

 
The issue results from a June verdict by the European Court of Justice (ECJ), which mandates Hungary pay 200 million euros ($223 million) for ongoing non-compliance with EU asylum policies. Until Hungary followed the court's decision, the court fined daily 1 million euros more. These fines followed Hungary's conviction of violating the rights of asylum seekers by unlawfully detaining them in closed-off transit zones around its southern borders.

On Wednesday, the European Commission—the executive branch of the EU—announced that it will start taking 200 million euros out of funding set for Hungary from the EU budget. Balazs Ujvari, a Commission spokesman, said that the "off-setting process"—which refers to reducing payments from future EU disbursements to Hungary—will require The Commission has also made a separate payment request for the daily fines taken together, which come to 93 million euros ($103 million). Hungary 45 days to answer that demand.

Hungary's answer is nationalism and defiance.
Saying the EU's decision "outrageous and unacceptable," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has rejected it. Renowned for its strict immigration policy, Orbán's administration has often run afoul of Brussels on asylum rules. When more than a million people left conflict areas like Syria, Hungary responded to the 2015 migration crisis by erecting razor-wire barriers along its borders with Serbia and Croatia and creating dubious transit zones to handle asylum seekers. Hungary has kept defying EU asylum regulations even after these zones were closed in 2020 following a different ECJ decision, which fuels more legal action.

A move much attacked as an extra obstacle to obtaining international protection, Orbán's government has also pushed through rules requiring asylum applicants to apply for travel permits from Hungarian embassies in Belgrade or Kyiv before entering Hungary.

The Contextual Legal and Humanitarian Legal
Years of court fights over Hungary's treatment of asylum seekers came to a head with the ECJ's decision earlier this year. Denying individuals access to international protection and unjustly holding asylum seekers while their petitions were being handled, the court concluded Hungary had broken EU law. Tasked with making sure member states respect EU rules, the European Commission decided Hungary's ongoing resistance unacceptable and ordered fines.

Hungary's fines and sanctions act as a reminder of the EU's dedication to respect of asylum rights under international law. Under EU laws, Asylum seekers have the right to request for protection should they experience persecution based on race, religion, ethnicity, or gender among other grounds. Viewed as an infringement on fundamental rights was Hungary's policy of holding migrants and mandating application from foreign embassies.

More general consequences for EU-Hungary ties
Deeper, long-standing differences over democratic values, rule of law, and migration policy define this most recent clash between Hungary and the EU. Hungary has regularly taken a nationalist, anti-immigration posture that runs against the EU's more inclusive view of shared responsibility for migrants. Though dealing with a member state that has regularly disobeyed its policies, the financial penalties are not only punitive but also symbolic, indicating the EU's will to uphold its legal requirements.

The EU's actions against Hungary might have more general effects, including souring Hungary's already strained ties to Brussels. The financial expenses of Hungary's disobedience will rise as it keeps contesting the EU's power, maybe resulting in more cuts in EU financing.