At the Sixth Bali Process Ministerial Conference in Bali, Indonesia on 23 March 2016, Ministers recognised that timely, safe and dignified returns of persons found not to be owed international protection is an important element of orderly migration. Building on outcomes from the Roundtable on Returns and Reintegration, in Manila, Philippines in December 2015, Ministers agreed to the establishment of a Technical Experts Group to exchange best practices with respect to returns and reintegration.

The Technical Experts Group on Returns and Reintegration supports Bali Process members to share information on returns and reintegration, including key policy initiatives, trends and issues, and to identify opportunities for cooperation and capacity building.

The Technical Experts Group on Returns and Reintegration is co-chaired by Australia and currently, the International Organization for Migration (IOM), and reports annually to the Bali Process Ad Hoc Group. It brings together a network of experts from the sixteen states and three international organisations that form the Ad Hoc Group membership.

Priorities outlined in The Technical Experts Group on Returns and Reintegration’s latest meeting in November 2022 include:

• A reiteration of the commitment to effective returns and reintegration as migration channels expand and re-open after Covid-19
• Addressing challenges around sustainable returns and reintegration including financial, administrative and legal barriers to return
• A focus on socio-economic reintegration support as a key way to prevent secondary migration
• Acknowledging the need to work with Member States to address the increase in trafficking in persons and exploitation through online platforms in the region, and the additional and complex challenges in assisting victims to safely return and reintegrate in their communities of origin.