Nowadays, migration is one of the main topics of debate in the European Union due to its significant presence in the overall population of European countries—6.8% are non-EU citizens, and 4.0% were born in another EU country. However, the lack of a gender perspective in migration policies is striking. When migration takes place within a hegemonic patriarchal social structure, it gives rise to a system of triple discrimination based on ethnicity, social class, and gender. As a result, migrant women are particularly vulnerable, a situation that is further exacerbated in the context of motherhood.
In this context, the European Union has implemented the Action Plan on Integration and Inclusion 2021–2027, which does not include measures specifically targeting migrant women; it merely recommends that Member States adopt a gender perspective. In other words, it is a strategic framework whose response to the needs of the most vulnerable groups relies on a general, cross-cutting approach to gender across different domains: education, inclusive training, access to and retention in the labour market, effective access to healthcare, and the right to decent and safe housing. This means that the specific needs of migrant women have not been adequately addressed within European Union policies.
The European Union’s reviews of the Integration and Inclusion Plans in 2022 and 2025 highlight initiatives undertaken by Member States, as well as the EU’s decision to use the Gender Equality Strategy 2020–2025 as a reference framework for addressing these issues. However, this strategy does not focus specifically on migration-related challenges. As these reports acknowledge, existing initiatives are insufficient to ensure the effective integration and inclusion of migrant women. Persistent barriers include difficulties in recognising qualifications, limited language knowledge, and administrative delays, among others. These obstacles lead to a significant loss of social and labour rights, reduced access to education opportunities aligned with their needs and interests, and limited opportunities for work–life balance—factors that disproportionately affect migrant women and shape their migration experiences.
Therefore, it can be argued that a genuine gender perspective is lacking in EU policies, as they fail to address the specific needs coming from intersecting forms of discrimination faced by migrant women simply for being both women and migrants.
Although gender is mentioned in EU policy frameworks, it is not operationalised through concrete measures. As a result, several countries have launched their own initiatives. For example, Spain has implemented national programmes such as Programa Sara, aimed at improving the quality of life of migrant women through personal empowerment and enhanced employability, in collaboration with experienced organisations. Another example is the EmpowerHer programme, implemented in Cyprus, France, Germany, and Portugal, which focuses on improving employability and promoting active citizenship through comprehensive training in both personal and professional skills. However, as the European Commission has noted, these initiatives remain insufficient to achieve the full inclusion of migrant women. This reinforces the need for targeted, structural measures at the European level, beyond an ongoing debate that should already have been resolved.
In this regard, an important question arises: why are specific plans not being developed at the European Union level? Given the extensive scientific evidence produced by researchers on female migration, it is difficult to understand the absence of concrete, enforceable actions by the EU.
It is a matter of justice to recognise and address the triple discrimination experienced by migrant women, which violates their rights. One example of a potential measure would be the regulation, at the European level, of access to the labour market—particularly in the domestic and care sectors. For instance, Spain’s Royal Decree-Law 16/2022 regulates social security contributions, maximum working hours, and unemployment protection for domestic workers. Similarly, France introduced reforms in 2024 to establish a more unified employment system with minimum wage protections through the CESU scheme. The effective professionalisation of this sector, based on equal opportunities, would improve the lives of those who sustain it—namely migrant women in vulnerable situations.
By responding to their specific needs through targeted measures, the European Union could move towards a society that actively fights discrimination, opposes racism, and adopts a gender perspective.