The European Commission has refused to register the “Save Europe Act”, a European Citizens’ Initiative calling for a moratorium on new immigration from non-Western countries and a fundamental reform of the EU’s migration and asylum system.
The initiative was launched by Austrian activist Martin Sellner and Dutch commentator Eva Vlaardingerbroek. Its organisers say it has already gathered more than 580,000 signatures.
The Commission ruled that the initiative failed to meet the legal requirements for registration as a European Citizens’ Initiative.
It said the proposal’s call for a moratorium on immigration from “non-Western countries”, including for study and family reunification, and its reference to the “ethnic and cultural continuity” of Europe’s “native peoples” would amount to discrimination based on race or ethnic origin.
The Commission also objected to the initiative’s claim that Europe was facing a “demographic exchange” caused by non-Western and non-European migrants.
Under EU rules, a European Citizens’ Initiative must comply with the EU Treaties and the Charter of Fundamental Rights. The Commission said the Save Europe Act was “manifestly contrary” to the values of the Union and therefore could not be registered.
The decision means that the campaign cannot use the formal European Citizens’ Initiative mechanism, which allows citizens to ask the Commission to propose legislation after collecting at least one million signatures from at least seven EU member states.
Sellner and Vlaardingerbroek condemned the decision.
“We will not back down,” Vlaardingerbroek said in a post announcing the Commission’s decision. The organisers accused Brussels of rejecting the views of “nearly 600,000 European patriots” and described the move as an attack on democratic rights.
The official X account of the Save Europe Act stated “According to them, wanting to halt open-ended non-Western mass immigration and protect the demographic continuity of Europe’s peoples is “racial discrimination” of third nationals and goes “contrary to EU values.”
“Their motivation is vague, weak and telling of their true anti-democratic nature. We will not stop here. We are going to take action against this decision. The fight continues. Europe’s peoples are not required to accept their own demographic disappearance as a ‘value.'”
The Commission’s decision followed a warning sent to the organisers in June, when it said the initiative’s proposals appeared incompatible with the EU’s fundamental rights and values. The campaigners responded by continuing to collect signatures and said they would not change their demands.
The initiative had called for an end to what it described as open-ended “non-Western mass immigration” and for a reform of the EU’s migration and asylum system. Its organisers also called for policies based on preserving the “ethnic and cultural continuity” of Europe’s indigenous populations.
The Commission’s decision comes as EU migration policy itself is undergoing major changes. The EU’s Pact on Migration and Asylum entered into application in June, introducing common rules on screening, asylum procedures, border management and returns.
Brussels has also presented a five-year strategy that combines efforts to reduce irregular migration and improve returns with legal migration routes and the protection of people fleeing persecution.
The European Citizens’ Initiative is the EU’s formal mechanism for allowing citizens to propose changes to European policy.
Once an initiative is registered, organisers have 12 months to collect at least one million verified signatures from citizens in at least seven member states. If they reach that threshold, the European Commission must examine the proposal and issue a formal response, although it is not legally obliged to adopt the requested legislation.
Brussels has previously registered initiatives calling for EU-backed access to abortion, an EU-wide ban on so called “conversion practices”, the abolition of cages in animal farming, restrictions on fossil-fuel advertising and the removal of water services from market liberalisation. Several of these campaigns went on to collect more than one million signatures and receive formal responses from the Commission.
The European Commission has just officially refused to register the @saveeuropeact as a Citizens’ Initiave, discarding the voices of nearly 600,000 European patriots.
According to them, wanting to halt open-ended non-Western mass immigration and protect the demographic… pic.twitter.com/rpxwv9xw1t
— Save Europe Act (@SaveEuropeAct) July 22, 2026
