The eighth annual Vienna Migration Conference (VMC2023) took place on 10 and 11 October 2023, gathering key stakeholders from the migration policy world. Discussions centred on pressing topics in migration governance, including how to facilitate safe and regular migration, protecting migrants’ rights at borders, what the future of work might look like, and the role of policy in securing needed workers. A range of speakers took stock of where we stand and where we need to go, sharing successful initiatives and ideas for the road ahead.