Asian Routes

Migration from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh is shaped by a combination of structural economic conditions, labour regimes, and long-term inequalities in access to education and secure employment, which together limit opportunities within national labour markets and encourage outward mobility. In India, migration is closely associated with higher education and professional trajectories, particularly in sectors integrated into global labour markets, where international mobility functions as a prerequisite for career advancement. In Pakistan, persistent economic precarity is compounded by political instability and localized insecurity, narrowing livelihood options and influencing both labour-oriented migration and movements linked to protection. In Bangladesh, labour migration constitutes a central household strategy for income generation, further reinforced by recurring environmental pressures, including flooding and coastal erosion, which place additional strain on already vulnerable livelihoods. Across all three contexts, migration decisions are rarely individual choices; rather, they emerge from family-level strategies shaped by obligation, risk assessment, and the presence of established migrant networks abroad.

These movements vary in scale and visibility depending on the channels through which they pass. Eurostat data show that India is among the largest countries of origin for legal migrants to the European Union, with close to 200,000 first residence permits issued in a recent year, mainly for work and study. Bangladesh also represents a significant legal flow, concentrated in Southern Europe, particularly Italy, while migration from Pakistan appears smaller but stable. Alongside these formal pathways, migrants from all three countries are present within irregular movements. In 2024, Frontex recorded over 230,000 detections of irregular border crossings into the EU, primarily along the Central Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean, and Western Balkan routes, with South Asian nationals forming a visible though not dominant share.

Routes from South Asia to Europe typically involve multiple stages and different modes of transport. Indian migrants predominantly travel by air and enter Europe through legal channels such as student or work visas. Migrants from Pakistan and Bangladesh more often follow mixed trajectories that combine air travel, extended overland movement, and, in some cases, sea crossings. These routes frequently pass through transit countries such as Iran, Turkey, or Libya before reaching Europe. Route selection is strongly influenced by visa restrictions, financial resources, and access to intermediaries, rather than by geographical distance alone.

Regarding destinations, many migrants from South Asia initially aim to reach Northern or Western European countries, which are commonly associated with stronger labour markets and long-term stability. In practice, however, many first arrive in Southern Europe, particularly in countries such as Italy and Greece, because these countries are located along major entry routes into the European Union. For Bangladeshi migrants in particular, Italy has become not only a point of entry but also a place of long-term settlement. This is closely linked to Italy’s labour migration system, including the Decreto Flussi, which sets annual quotas for the admission of non-EU workers in specific sectors. The decree is designed to respond to labour shortages in areas such as agriculture, construction, and domestic work. However, the number of permits available, the complexity of the procedures, and the timing of the system often do not match real labour demand. As a result, many migrants are attracted to Italy by the possibility of future regularisation but initially work without legal status, contributing to the growth of informal labour markets. In this way, Italy operates both as a destination shaped by labour needs and as a context where legal and irregular employment exist side by side, influencing migrants’ decisions to remain.