Fresh statistics released by the Federal Employment Agency reveal a sharp rise in citizen’s allowance payments to foreign children in Germany. In June 2025, around 1.7 million minors were receiving welfare known as citizen’s income, of which 822,000 were foreign nationals. This represents nearly half of all recipients, with foreign children now accounting for 48.4% of total payments. Relating these figures to the entire population, 35.1% of foreign children receive citizen’s allowance, compared with 7.3% of German children.
The data shows a dramatic increase in welfare dependency among foreign minors since 2015. In 2010, just over 300,000 foreign children received benefits, compared with 1.37 million German children. Payments to non-German minors have increased more than fivefold, from around €669 million in 2010 to €3.6 billion in 2024—a rise of 435%. In the first half of 2025 alone, nearly €1.7 billion went to minors without German citizenship, while €1.3 billion supported German children.
Certain German regions show particularly high dependency rates. In four federal states, more than half of minors receiving citizen’s income are foreign nationals. In some districts, such as parts of Thuringia, over 60% of unaccompanied foreign minors rely on these payments. The city-states of Bremen, Berlin, and Hamburg also in the lead in overall proportions, with Bremen reporting 26.9% of children receiving support at the end of 2024.
Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) politician René Springer has called for immediate action, emphasizing that more than one in three foreign children are dependent on welfare. He warned that the social welfare system is under pressure and argued for stricter migration policies, including stricter border control and reducing incentives for welfare dependency among newcomers.
“While the benefits for German children have remained nearly constant for years, the expenditures for foreign children are exploding—a fivefold increase since 2010. This is the result of a failed migration policy. The German welfare state is becoming a magnet for global poverty migration,” he posted on X.
The growing reliance on citizen’s allowance among foreign minors is part of a wider pattern showing the strain mass migration places on Germany’s social system. Employment rates among migrant adults remain low, with only 36.7% of Syrians and 37% of Afghans contributing to social security. “There is still considerable catching-up potential” compared to other groups, noted Mathias Middelberg, deputy leader of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group.
