Algeria's president urges youth living abroad illegally to come home

Algeria’s President Abdelmadjid Tebboune has called on Algerian youth living abroad “in vulnerable and illegal situations” to come home.

During Sunday’s cabinet meeting, the president said he would regularise the status of these young citizens, including those who have committed minor infractions in their host country.

Some of these young people were “misled and exploited to act against their own country," the government said in a statement.

These young people now find themselves “separated from their families and friends, suffering in poverty and exploited in degrading work,” the statement read.

The measure could affect tens of thousands of young Algerians who have left their homeland illegally in recent years. Some 54,000 Algerians immigrated to Europe between 2020 and 2024, according to the International Organization for Migration.

Under Algerian law, leaving the country illegally is punishable by up to 6 months in prison and a fine.

The presidential decree would allow these youth to come home without facing legal proceedings if they pledge not to reoffend.

The measure “excludes anyone who committed violent crimes, drug offenses, arms trafficking,” or collaborated with foreign security services to “harm” Algeria.