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The paper discusses the increasing roles of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in assisting vulnerable categories, in coping with the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak in Europe, following the lack of state capabilities and policy coordination. Focusing on the major consequences imposed by the pandemic in a very specific policy field, that is to say, the migration and refugees’ policies, it is argued that civil society organisations have complemented governmental responses by mitigating their inconsistency and inhuman feature. Other than providing assistance to vulnerable people, NGOs are experimenting new public spaces, opened by the pandemic, to promote policy debates and reforms.