Agency Report
The unauthorised entries detected by the Federal Police recently mainly concerned people from Syria, Ukraine, Afghanistan and Turkey. This is according to an answer from the German government to a parliamentary question from the Left Party group, which was made available to the German Press Agency. According to the answer, 20.6 per cent of people who wanted to enter Germany without a permit in the second half of 2024 came from Syria. Just under one in five were citizens of Ukraine.
Not every Ukrainian is allowed to enter the country
Ukrainian nationals do not have to apply for asylum in order to enter the country and receive protection in Germany or another EU country. This was agreed by the states of the European Union after the start of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.
However, this does not mean that every Ukrainian is automatically allowed to enter the country, the German government explains in its response. The reason given is: ‘Ukrainian nationals who have been living abroad for many years are not at risk from the fighting in Ukraine.’ Therefore, there is no need for protection for them. A transfer of residence for other reasons without the required visa for long-term residence is not possible on the basis of the corresponding regulation.
As the data provided by the German government also shows, the number of unauthorised entries fell from 127,549 in 2023 to 83,572 last year. The proportion of people without an entry permit who told the Federal Police that they intended to apply for asylum in Germany was also significantly lower recently.
Less than one in four applied for asylum
According to the German government, officials registered an application for asylum from around 23 per cent of those entering the country without authorisation at the border last year. In the previous year, the figure was 44.7 per cent. Assumptions by the Die Linke group that, against the backdrop of political expectations, asylum applications at the The Ministry of the Interior rejected speculation by the Die Linke group that, against the backdrop of political expectations, asylum applications could be virtually ignored by the federal police during internal border controls in order to be able to reject them directly.
Clara Bünger, a member of the Left Party, said: ‘The migration policy has completely departed from reality.’ In the discussion about the demand by CDU faction leader Friedrich Merz (CDU) for comprehensive rejections at land borders, the fact that the federal police are already rejecting many people is being completely overlooked. ‘In 2024, this affected more than 40,000 people, probably including many asylum seekers,’ surmises Bünger.
Since 16 September, there have been stationary controls at all German land borders. This is not actually envisaged in the Schengen area and is only permitted for a limited period of time. Among others, people who have not applied for asylum or who have been banned from entering the country are being turned back.
