Documents play a central role in contemporary migration governance, not only as administrative tools
but as performative artefacts of state power. This article explores how return-related documents, such
as orders to leave the territory, negative decisions, and appeal confirmations, are used, interpreted, and
contested by migrants and return counsellors in the everyday practices of return counseling. Drawing
on ethnographic fieldwork, the analysis highlights three dimensions of these documents: their symbolic
value in marking identity and legal status; their temporal function in structuring uncertainty and future
imaginaries; and their instrumental role in the logic of return. By foregrounding the impact of these
‘paper trails’ during return counseling, the article reveals how bureaucratic documents both enact state
borders and generate moments of resistance, negotiation and agency among migrants.