Widening the net of immigration control: an analysis of Belgium’s assertive return policy

This article critically examines the evolution of Belgium’s Assisted Voluntary Return (AVR) programme within the framework of its recent ‘assertive return policy’. Drawing on a directed qualitative analysis of policy documents, it argues that AVR has become central to the broader expansion of state power in migration governance. The establishment of assertive return counselling, the creation of return offices and the introduction of a legal duty to cooperate highlight both the spatial diffusion of control and the deepening of state reach into the everyday lives of migrants. Rather than serving as an alternative to forced return, AVR operates in tandem with it, expanding the net of immigration control and legitimising detention and deportation. This article contributes to ongoing debates on the symbolic and disciplinary power of ‘soft’ migration control tools by showing how AVR is mobilised as a central mechanism in the internalisation and normalisation of deportation practices.