Who we are

Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, supports EU Member States and Schengen-associated countries in the management of the EU’s external borders and the fight against cross-border crime. 

Frontex is a centre of excellence for border control activities at the EU’s external borders, sharing intelligence and expertise with all Member States and with neighbouring non-EU countries affected by migratory trends and cross-border crime. 

With the Standing Corps, the European Union’s first uniformed law enforcement service, Frontex has transformed into an operational arm of the EU. 

Hundreds of officers take part in operations along the external borders of the European Union and beyond. They perform a variety of tasks such as border surveillance, fighting cross-border crime, and assisting in return operations. The officers stand together with national authorities to safeguard the Schengen Area, one of Europe’s greatest achievements.

The ideas that led to the creation of Frontex have a deep history in the European project. Fostering the free movement of people has been an important objective of European integration. In 1957 the free movement of goods, persons, services, and capital were identified as foundations of the Community in the Treaty of Rome.

During the 1980s, five Member States (Belgium, France, Germany, Luxembourg and the Netherlands) decided to create a common area of free movement – a territory without internal borders. In 1985, they signed the first agreement in a small town in Luxembourg called Schengen – an agreement that was followed in 1990 by a Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement.

When the “Schengen Area,” a territory defined by the free movement of persons, entered into force in 1995, checks at internal borders were abolished and a single external border was created. Gradually, border control practices and the rules governing visas and the right to asylum became common for all Schengen countries.

In order to keep a balance between freedom and security, participating Member States agreed to introduce additional measures focusing on the cooperation and coordination of the work of police and judicial authorities. Because organised crime networks do not respect borders, this cooperation became key to safeguarding the internal security of the Schengen Area.

In 1999, with the signing of the Treaty of Amsterdam, this intergovernmental cooperation was incorporated into the EU framework.

Since 1999 the European Council on Justice and Home Affairs has taken several steps towards further strengthening cooperation in the area of migration, asylum, and security.

In the field of border management this led to the creation of the External Border Practitioners Common Unit - a group composed of the members of the Strategic Committee on Immigration, Frontiers, and Asylum (SCIFA) and heads of national border control services.

The Common Unit coordinated the national projects of Ad-Hoc Centres on Border Control. Their task was to oversee EU-wide pilot projects and implement common operations related to border management.

Two years after the establishment of "ad-hoc" centres" the European Council decided to go a step further. With the objective of improving the procedures and working methods of the Common Unit, Council Regulation (EC) 2007/2004 of 26 October 2004 led to the establishment of the European Agency for the Management of Operational Cooperation at the External Borders of the Member States of the European Union (Frontex).

This Regulation was repealed by Regulation (EU) 2016/1624 of 14 September 2016, establishing Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency.

The latest amendment of the Frontex mandate occurred when Regulation (EU) 2019/1896 of 13 November 2019 on the European Border and Coast Guard (OJ L 295, 14.11.2019, p. 1) came into force.

Together with EU Member States, we ensure safe and well-functioning external borders providing security.

We are professional
We have the knowledge, skills, and competencies needed to fulfil our mission efficiently with high ethical standards, and we continuously strive for excellence in order to improve our performance.

We are respectful
We recognise people, institutions, and their roles, and demonstrate respect by treating these as valuable and important.

We seek cooperation
Together with EU Member States' relevant national authorities, with the participation of other stakeholders, we manage the EU's external borders and seek cooperation with non-EU countries.

Together, we cooperate and collaborate across the organisation as well as with external stakeholders in order to accomplish common goals and objectives.

We are accountable
We are trustworthy in fulfilling our responsibilities in our work, its timeliness, and quality.

We care
As European public agents we serve the interests of Europe's citizens because we care about people and we believe in European values.