On December 24, 2010, the deadline for the transposition of the Returns Directive (2008/115/EC, Directive on Common Standards and Procedures in Member States for Returning Illegally Staying Third Country Nationals) expired. The lectures on which this book is based were originally given during a Jean Monnet/Center for Migration Law seminar on the Returns Directive that took place in Nijmegen, at the Center for Migration Law, Radboud University, on February 14, 2011. In light of the very substantial level of interest, it had been decided to publish a book on the results of the seminar so that people who were not able to attend may benefit from the wealth of knowledge and information which was shared. The book is divided in two sections. The first section goes into the central themes and the problem issues of the Returns Directive. The second part focuses on the implementation of the Returns Directive in a selected number of Member States. The book offers insight in all the different aspects of the Returns Directive.