Asylum โApplications Decline in Germany, government Pushes for โIncreased Deportations
Berlin – germany recorded 7,883 first-time applications forโ asylum in October, a 3.3 โขpercent decrease from the 9,126 applicationsโ registered inโค September, according to โrecent data. โฃThe figuresโ represent a continuing trend of fluctuating, yet generally declining, numbers throughout 2023.
Thisโ shift โcomes as the German government, led by Minister of โขthe Interior Nancyโ Faeser, signals a firmer stance on โmigration policy, aiming to accelerate deportations and reassess protections for Syrian โrefugees. The evolvingโค situation impacts not โฃonlyโค asylum seekers but also broader European Union discussions onโ managing migration flows and establishing external “return hubs.”
October’s request numbers contrast withโ theโ 17 percent increase โฃseen between โAugust (7,803) and September.โค However, the September total itself marked a substantial 49.6 percent drop compared to the sameโค month in the previous year, as reported by the Federalโข Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF). โ
The lowest pointโข for initial asylum applications this year occurred in June, with 6,860 applications – a 59 percent decrease year-over-year (from 16,773 in June 2022). While October’s figures โขareโ lower than those ofโ four months earlier in the year, they exceeded the numbersโข fromโ five other months in 2023.
Beyond asylum claims, Minister โฃFaeser has emphasizedโฃ a commitment to increasing โdeportations. She โrecently announced plans to expand deportation eligibility beyond individuals deemed perilousโ or criminal to include those โฃwhose โฃasylum requests have โฃbeen denied, including Syrian refugees. BAMF willโฃ resume processing asylum applications from Syrians, a process previously suspended due to โฃthe ongoing civil war and the resulting protectionsโข afforded to those already inโข Germany.
Minister Faeser has also engaged in discussions with counterparts from other EU nations regarding the potential establishment of โ”return hubs” in non-EU countries to facilitate faster deportations.
