Hungary has formally requested an exemption from EU asylum and migration regulations, Minister for European Union Affairs János Boka announced in a Facebook post on October 7. In a letter addressed to European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson, Boka stated that Hungary, like the Netherlands, is seeking an opt-out from the EU’s asylum and migration acquis in case of a future Treaty amendment.

Hungary's government is committed to taking decisive steps to protect its borders and stop illegal migration, which it says threatens national security. "We believe that restoring stronger national control over migration is currently the only way to achieve our goals and effectively halt illegal migration," Boka added.

He said that Hungary remains committed to the Schengen area, which "has unfortunately become fragmented" due to illegal migration and the widespread introduction of internal border controls.

The Netherlands' new right-wing coalition government announced last month that it would opt out of the EU-wide asylum and migration rules set to come into force in 2026.

The Hungarian government looks set to shift focus back on migration issues, as polls show the new Tisza Party is closing the gap. Fidesz has accused Tisza Party leader Peter Magyar of planning to build migrant camps. These accusations followed reports from independent media revealing that the government had been preparing to construct such facilities in Western Hungary. Amid public discontent, the government abandoned the project after the media reports surfaced, while consistently denying the plans.

Viktor Orban’s nationalist government has defied a summer ruling of the CJEU to implement the EU’s asylum procedures. In June, the EU’s top court ordered Hungary to pay a lump sum of €200mn and a penalty of €1mn per day. This has accumulated to over €300mn and continues to grow.

In response, the European Commission said it would initiate a "compensation procedure" to deduct the fine from Hungary’s next disbursement of EU funds, which has triggered angry reactions from Orban.

Speaking at Matteo Salvini’s rally on Sunday, the prime minister threatened the European Commission, stating: "If they continue to punish us, we will transport the migrants from Budapest to Brussels and leave them at the Brussels offices."