InfoMigrants By Charlotte Oberti Published on : 2021/03/01 What happens to migrants who are rescued in the Mediterranean Sea and then brought to shore in Italy? InfoMigrants explains the procedure of fingerprinting, compulsory health quarantine, and the steps that follow. This article was updated in February 2021. Migrants who embark on the highly dangerous journey accross the Mediterranean Sea do so in the hope of being rescued by a humanitarian aid vessel or by coast guards who will bring them to a European country. Although landings occur in Malta, Cyprus and Spain, Italy remains the country where the most ships come ashore after a rescue. In 2020, the number of migrants arriving by sea in Italy exceeded 34,000, mainly on the islands of Lampedusa and Sicily and in the toe of Italy, Calabria.