After German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the country needed to “deport people faster,” the government has agreed to implement stricter immigration measures. That’s bad news to the many people attempting to make a new life for themselves in the European nation.
Changing approach
Germany has had a relatively open approach to immigrants for the last two years. Incoming individuals were a vital solution to a severe labor shortage problem plaguing the European nation.
Open arms
In January, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said, “Those who want to roll up their sleeves are welcome in Germany.”
Times change
Now, however, the country is in a recession. There are also fears that high levels of immigration are contributing to the dangerous rise in the German far right.
Bad omen
On October 20, Scholz was interviewed by Der Spiegel, a leading German news outlet. He argued that “too many people are coming” to Germany and that it was time for “large-scale deportations.”
High volumes
By September, the number of new asylum applications was over 70% higher than for the same period in 2022. By the end of August, over 220,000 people had applied for asylum in Germany.
Overcrowding
One of the main problems these high numbers of arrivals are causing is overcrowding in shelters. Politicians across the political spectrum have argued that Germany has “reached its limits.”
Stricter rules
“We need mechanisms to ensure that the number of refugees arriving here, especially through illegal immigration, is contained,” said a Social Democrat politician.
The result
After a night of negotiations, the German federal government and regions agreed to implement measures to reduce immigration and increase deportations.
Quicker turnaround
One part of the package is a number of provisions that aim to speed up the process of reviewing asylum applications. “Procedures must be accelerated, with asylum applications and initial interviews taking place in the initial reception facility,” Scholz explained when these provisions were just proposals. “In some states, initial rulings in deportation cases come after four months, while in others, it takes 39 months. That is unacceptable. We have to deport people more often and faster.”
Restrictions
German officials also agreed to implement restrictions on family reunifications. These allow family members of migrants in Germany to join them in the country.
The money question
A new division of financial burdens between the federal government and regions was also agreed upon. The federal government will provide additional financial aid to state and local communities.
Benefits
Additionally, officials agreed to restrict the benefits available to asylum seekers. People seeking asylum do so because they have been forced to leave their home country, often for fear of suffering violence or death due to persecution.
Scholz explains
“On the one hand,” Scholz said, “there is the immigration of workers that we need. And some are seeking asylum because they are the targets of political oppression. On the other hand, though, that means that all those who don’t belong to one of those cannot stay. That is why we are limiting irregular migration to Germany.”
Scholz continues
“Those who are not likely to be granted permission to stay in Germany because they cannot claim a need for protection must go back,” Scholz continued. “To make that possible, our public authorities must be reachable around the clock so that someone can actually be deported when the federal police take them into custody.”
Goodbye, paper
“We also must finally press ahead with the digitalization of the Immigration Office,” Scholz said. “The paper era must come to an end.” Germany is infamous in Europe for the amount of paperwork it requires for various bureaucratic procedures.
Controversies
While there is extensive evidence that immigration can benefit societies, especially those with aging populations and labor shortages, recent polling shows that a majority of Germans believe the opposite. Most respondents were in favor of measures to limit the number of refugees entering the country.
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