According to the CJEU press release of 5 March 2026:

"A Moroccan national who entered Finland illegally in September 2022, despite being subject to a ban on entry to the Schengen area, was detained on four occasions by the authorities of that Member State with a view to his removal to his country of origin.

The legality of one of these periods of detention, from 11 September 2023 to 18 January 2024, is being examined by the Finnish courts, since, at that stage, the initial maximum period of six months provided for in the Return Directive may have been exceeded, taking into account previous periods of detention.

The Supreme Court of Finland, hearing the case at final instance, asked the Court of Justice about the calculation of the maximum period of detention and the judicial review of whether that period has been exceeded.

The Court considers that, in order to determine whether the maximum period of detention has been reached, it is necessary to aggregate all periods of detention completed in a Member State for the purpose of enforcing one and the same return decision. It states that neither the fact that those periods are interspersed with periods of liberty, nor a change in the factual circumstances pertaining to the person concerned gives rise to a new period of detention.

However, the Court points out that Member States may decide not to apply the Return Directive to third-country nationals who are subject to a criminal law sanction providing for their return. Nor does the directive prevent Member States from imposing penalties, including criminal penalties, on persons whose return procedure has been completed and who nevertheless continue to stay illegally without any justified reason.

With regard to exceeding the initial maximum detention period of six months, the Court points out that any decision to extend detention must be subject to review by a judicial authority. Since that review is mandatory, it cannot be dependent on a request by the detained person. Furthermore, it does not necessarily have to be carried out before that maximum period has been reached, but it must take place as soon as possible after the decision to extend detention has been taken.

The absence of such judicial review does not automatically entail the immediate release of the national concerned. Indeed, as long as the substantive conditions for detention, as provided for in the Return Directive, are met, exceeding the initial maximum period of six months does not require the annulment of the extension decision or the lifting of the detention."