On June 25, 2026, the EU Council voted to temporarily restrict visas for Somali nationals in response to what it sees as insufficient cooperation on taking back migrants deported from Europe. This measure activates Article 25a of the Visa Code, a mechanism that allows Brussels to restrict visa issuance, raise fees, or slow processing times for countries it deems uncooperative on deportation and readmission.

Somalia's president pushed back immediately. He said Mogadishu will accept Somali nationals being returned, but with a condition: Europe must verify their identity before they board planes home. Al Jazeera reported his position on June 26. This framing shifts the terms of the argument. Under international readmission agreements, the country doing the deporting is typically responsible for confirming nationality first. Somalia is not refusing to take people back; it is saying the process has to follow a legal sequence.

How Visa Restrictions Work as a Pressure Tool

Article 25a was designed as a middle option—tougher than a diplomatic complaint but lighter than broad sanctions. It works by making it harder for a country's citizens to travel to Europe. When visa categories are restricted or fees rise, citizens and the diaspora feel it directly: family visits become costlier, business travel gets complicated, and professionals abroad face barriers to movement.

The EU has used this tool before, against Gambia, Senegal, and Bangladesh, with mixed results. Countries facing domestic pressure or state fragility rarely shift policy quickly in response. For Somalia, which is still fighting territorial battles against al-Shabaab, accepting large deportation flows without identity guarantees carries its own domestic political risks.

A Wider Transatlantic Shift

Europe's move reflects a broader Western tightening. In January 2026, the United States terminated Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Somali nationals, a humanitarian shelter that had shielded tens of thousands from deportation. That termination took effect March 17, 2026. Both the U.S. and EU actions happened within six months and target the same population. Whether deliberate coordination or parallel policy, the effect is the same: a simultaneous hardening of deportation pressure from two sides of the Atlantic.

The Economic Pressure and What Comes Next

Somalia's diaspora remittances—money sent home by Somalis abroad—exceed total foreign aid and form the backbone of the economy. Visa restrictions that discourage travel to Europe directly threaten those flows. Brussels likely calculated that this leverage would force Mogadishu to comply.

So far it has not worked. Somalia's reframing as a procedural dispute—verify identity first, then send people back—puts the government on solid legal ground. How the EU responds to that distinction will determine what happens next. Will this follow the pattern of earlier Article 25a cases, where restrictions were eased after partial cooperation? Or will it turn into a longer standoff? The Council's decision is temporary, which leaves room for negotiation on both sides, but as of late June 2026, both sides appear to be in an early confrontational phase.