Mélenchon Backs Mass Migrant Amnesty, Slams EU Returns

Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who is running in France’s upcoming presidential elections, positioned mass regularisation as both a humanitarian necessity and an economic opportunity during an online press conference with non-mainstream media outlets.

Mélenchon echoed arguments made by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, claiming that legalising undocumented workers would bolster France’s struggling social security system. The LFI leader suggested that granting legal status to illegal workers would immediately expand the contributor base to social programmes.

France’s social security agencies faced financing shortfalls of €6.7 billion in 2025, according to FIPECO, a public finance research organisation established by former Court of Auditors judge François Ecalle.

French Bureaucracy Creating Illegal Immigrants

The left-wing politician took aim at France’s residence permit renewal procedures, arguing that administrative failures are actively manufacturing an undocumented population. Mélenchon claimed the state apparatus is transforming legal residents into illegal immigrants by making ten-year permit renewals nearly impossible to obtain.

He advocated for accelerated regularisation pathways for children, families, and individuals with long-term residence in France.

Brussels Deportation Rules Under Fire

Mélenchon sharply criticised European migration policy, particularly recent measures to expedite deportations to countries outside the EU. On June 17, the European Parliament approved legislation enabling faster deportation and stricter return rules for illegal immigrants.

The LFI leader restated his party’s doctrine of “European disobedience,” under which a government led by his movement would refuse to implement European Union directives deemed harmful to social or environmental interests. This stance reflects LFI’s broader position that France should remain an EU member while selectively ignoring rules that conflict with domestic policy goals.

Regularisation Numbers in Decline

France’s Interior Ministry estimates the undocumented migrant population at between 600,000 and 900,000 people, with most assessments settling around 700,000. Employment-based regularisations have been falling, with approximately 28,610 recorded nationwide last year.

The Spanish government’s new “extraordinary regularisation” scheme attracted 13,500 applications on its first day alone, as Brussels Signal reports.

Mélenchon’s proposals stand in stark contrast to stricter immigration enforcement policies advocated by conservative and nationalist parties in France and across Europe.

With information from Brussels Signal