Beyond the EU Benchmark: The Role of Informal Cross-Border Mobility and Labour in Regional Free Movement Regimes

Across the globe, regional economic communities have established frameworks for free movement of persons. However, these frameworks are frequently analyzed through the lens of the European Union (EU), with its conceptualization serving as the implicit benchmark. This EU-centric approach often assumes that free movement frameworks must mirror the EU model to be considered legitimate, thereby neglecting the diversity of regional contexts and the significance of informal migrant practices, such as cross-border mobility and labor, in shaping these regimes. Solely focusing on top-down, state-led processes provides an incomplete understanding of region-specific dynamics and the multifaceted interplay between formal policies and informal practices. This article examines the free movement frameworks of Mercosur and ECOWAS, contrasting their development and functioning with the EU model. Drawing on 58 in-depth interviews with stakeholders from governmental and civil society organizations, it explores how formal policies and informal migrant practices interact to constitute regional free movement regimes. By integrating Regionalism Theories that foreground bottom-up migrant agency and the Autonomy of Migration perspective, the analysis challenges dominant narratives that view informal practices as anomalies requiring regulation or control. Instead, it demonstrates how these practices act as central drivers of free movement frameworks, particularly in contexts where top-down implementation faces challenges. Informal practices often compensate for policy shortcomings and reflect deeper historical, normative, and economic realities within their respective regions. Furthermore, the findings reveal that policymakers’ attitudes toward informality—whether tolerating, normalizing, or encouraging it—are shaped by pragmatic and normative considerations. These attitudes vary across contexts and perceived risks, resulting in simultaneous processes of spatial convergence and divergence within regional free movement regimes. By recognizing informality as a constitutive, and often positive, force, this research moves beyond hierarchical comparisons and contributes to a broader, context-sensitive understanding of free movement frameworks. Ultimately, the article argues for the need to decenter the EU model as the benchmark for evaluating free movement. Regional frameworks such as those in Mercosur and ECOWAS emerge from distinct socio-economic and historical conditions, producing unique configurations that resist reductive comparisons. In doing so, this study contributes to theoretical debates in regionalism and migration, , offering insights into the interplay of formal policies and informal practices that shape regional mobility regimes in the Global South.