The European Court of Justice (ECJ), based in Luxembourg, has ruled that Hungary’s 2023 government decree converting prison sentences for human traffickers into ‘special reintegration detention’ breached EU law. The ruling, delivered on Thursday, found that the measure failed to impose effective, proportionate, and dissuasive sanctions as required under European legislation.
The Hungarian decree, introduced in 2023, automatically converted prison sentences for human trafficking offenders into a system where convicts were released and expelled within 72 hours, barred from re-entering the country for the duration of their original sentence. While the decree was repealed in August 2025, it had already affected 2,525 individuals before its abolition. The European Commission had argued that the policy undermined EU immigration and border control efforts by creating a ‘systemic risk’ that such crimes would go unpunished.
The ECJ’s judgment emphasised that ‘special reintegration detention’ did not constitute an effective sanction, as it replaced actual imprisonment with expulsion—a measure lacking both deterrent and proportional effects. The court also highlighted that the automatic nature of the release, without individual assessment of the crime’s severity or the offender’s circumstances, violated EU obligations. Notably, the policy applied even to serious offences—such as facilitating illegal immigration for financial gain or as part of a criminal organisation—where EU law mandates minimum eight-year prison sentences.
The ruling carries significant implications for Luxembourg, as the ECJ is headquartered in the country and its judgments set binding precedents for all EU member states. While the decision directly targets Hungary, it reinforces the EU’s stance on combating human trafficking and ensures consistency in legal enforcement across member states. The case also underscores the ECJ’s role in upholding EU law when national policies risk undermining collective security and justice standards.
This is not the first time Luxembourg’s judicial system has addressed contentious EU-wide legal disputes. As the host of the ECJ, the country plays a pivotal role in shaping Europe’s legal framework, often serving as a neutral ground for resolving conflicts between member states and the Commission.