The return of third-country nationals or stateless persons who do not have a right to stay in the Union, in accordance with fundamental rights as a general principle of Union law, as well as international law, including refugee protection, the principle of non-refoulement and human rights obligations, and in compliance with of the European Parliament and of the Council (21), is an important part of the comprehensive efforts to address migration in a fair and efficient way and, in particular, to reduce and deter irregular immigration. An increase in the effectiveness of the Union system to return illegally staying third-country nationals or stateless persons is necessary in order to maintain public trust in the Union migration and asylum system, and should go hand in hand with efforts to protect those in need of protection.
21. Directive 2008/115/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 December 2008 on common standards and procedures in Member States for returning illegally staying third-country nationals (OJ L 348, 24.12.2008, p. 98). ↩︎