Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) is proud of her asylum policy. In the last six months, the police arrested more than 700 smugglers.
17,600 unauthorized entries were prevented, and the number of asylum applications fell by a fifth compared to the previous year. The opposition continues to demand a change of course. More than 350,000 people applied for asylum in Germany in 2023 - more than since 2016. Although these figures do not represent illegal immigration, they nevertheless play into the hands of discourses against foreigners and the fear of excessive immigration. After 16 years of Union government, it is the traffic light coalition that will go down in history for its consistent migration policy. The party alliance had already agreed in the coalition agreement to introduce a new immigration law in order to attract as many skilled workers as possible to Germany. Faster deportations and asylum procedures as well as the introduction of a payment card for refugees are part of this. It is intended to prevent asylum seekers from using German state funds to pay smugglers who brought them to Germany or are supposed to bring relatives there.