The German federal government spent nearly €900,000 on organizations involved in Mediterranean migrant rescues in early 2025, according to official disclosures.
Organizations receiving state funds included SOS Humanity (€215,000), SOS Mediterranee (€201,694.50), Sea-Eye (€169,156), RESQSHIP (€34,994.40), and Italy-based Sant’Egidio (€279,000). The payments were made from January 1st to March 31st under the previous traffic light coalition of SPD, Greens, and FDP—and were subsequently halted by the new Union-SPD government.
During this period, 5,555 migrants were “rescued” in the Mediterranean. It remains unclear how many subsequently applied for asylum in Germany. AfD parliamentarian Stephan Brandner criticized the program as having
knowingly supported, even in its final days, a system that promotes illegal migration and thus effectively plays into the business models of human smugglers.
Brandner emphasized that taxpayer money should never be used to sustain illegal migration routes.
The controversy extends beyond the Mediterranean rescues. Germany’s Afghan resettlement plan, launched under the leftist government after the Taliban takeover in 2021, has faced scrutiny for poor oversight and reliance on non-governmental organizations.
Tichys Einblick reports that pro-migration NGOs were authorized to compile lists of Afghan beneficiaries, leading to concerns that thousands of migrants were allowed entry with falsified documents or fabricated stories. By early March 2026, over 33,000 Afghans had arrived under the scheme, including more than 20,000 claimed to be former local staff of the German army and their families.
