Athens – IOM Greece organized a charter flight from Athens to Tbilisi, facilitating the voluntary return of 134 Georgian nationals to their home country with safety and dignity.  

Among the returnees, 47 were identified as vulnerable individuals, including pregnant women, people with disabilities, and those facing health conditions. Arrangements were made in collaboration with the Ministry of Migration and Asylum and the Embassy of Georgia.  

Since September 2023, more than 3,560 migrants have safely returned to their country of origin with the support of IOM. 

Prior to their departure from Greece, migrants receive comprehensive assistance, including return and reintegration counselling, flight tickets, support with travel document issuance, pre-departure assistance at the airport, a one-time cash grant to help meet basic needs upon arrival, as well as transit and reception assistance when required. 

"IOM continues to collaborate with national authorities to strengthen return and reintegration policies that benefit both migrants and their communities. Effective return policies should go beyond the return process itself, ensuring that returnees have the necessary opportunities to rebuild their lives and achieve sustainable reintegration,” said Sanja Celebic Lukovac, Chief of Mission at IOM Greece. 

IOM is uniquely positioned and mandated to address the growing needs from governments and stakeholders to provide comprehensive support throughout the entire return process. This approach aims to improve outcomes for migrants while also enhancing effective governance of human mobility and migration management. 

"Returning home was not an easy decision, but with IOM’s support, I felt safe and prepared for this new chapter. The assistance I received has helped me to start afresh and work towards a better future for myself and my family,” said Madona Botchorishvili, one of the returnees.  

Since 2010, IOM Greece has been implementing Assisted Voluntary Return programmes, supporting over 60,000 migrants to return home. Additionally, more than 11,000 migrants have successfully completed personalized reintegration plans, which include income generation activities such as microbusiness start-ups, vocational training and the provision of temporary accommodation, medical support, and material assistance. 

The project “Implementation of Assisted Voluntary Returns and Reintegration Measures as well as the Operation of an Accommodation Center for Applicants of Voluntary Return” is implemented by IOM through the Home Affairs Funds 2021-2027, with co-funding by the European Union. 

For media enquiries, please contact: 

 Christine Nikolaidou, cnikolaidou@iom.int   

Editor’s Note 

Through the project, IOM Greece is expected to assist in the voluntary return of 17,000 third-country nationals to their countries of origin, to provide in kind reintegration assistance to 1,700 returnees and to accommodate 1,700 assisted voluntary return applicants in the Open Centre. The Open Centre serves as an accommodation option for migrants who present vulnerabilities and/or do not have a place to stay until the return procedure is completed.