Following a year that saw over 217,000 migrants apply for asylum in Germany for the first time, the most recorded since the 2016 European migrant crisis, official figures have revealed that the number of first-time asylum applications in the first seven months of 2023 has jumped by 78% year-over-year.
The figures, released on Monday, August 7th, by Germany’s Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF), revealed that Germany so far this year has received a total of 188,967 asylum applications, including 175,272 first-time asylum applications, indicating that the migration crisis in Germany continues to worsen, the Berlin-based daily Die Welt reports.
Of the nearly 189,000 asylum applications filed, some 14,000 applications were so-called follow-up applications, most of which tend to be filed by previously rejected asylum seekers in an attempt to have some sort of official recognition by the state.
The number of migrants seeking asylum so far in 2023 is the fifth-highest recorded in the history of the Federal Republic of Germany, exceeded only by the number of newcomers who entered in the same period during the height of the migrant crisis in 2015/2016, and during the Balkan wars in 1992 and 1993.
As has been the case for many years now, the vast majority of migrants seeking asylum originated from the Islamic world. Most are nationals of Syria (70,974), Afghanistan (36,358), Turkey (23,938), and Iraq (16,000). The first seven months of this year have witnessed a drastic uptick in asylum applications from Syria and Afghanistan, at 80% and 84%, respectively.
The figures do not include Ukrainian refugees who have traveled to Germany this year to seek protection, as they are not required to go through the normal asylum-seeking process. In 2022, following the onset of the Russo-Ukrainian war, approximately one million Ukrainian refugees relocated to Germany.
So far this year the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) has issued more positive asylum decisions compared to years past, granting some kind of protection status—refugee asylum, subsidiary protection, or protection against deportation—to 52% of the 153,912 decisions that were made up until the end of July. Generally, in previous years, BAMF has granted positive asylum decisions to roughly one-third of the applicants.
According to Die Welt, this uptick can be explained by the fact that the majority of asylum seekers this year are Syrian and Afghan nationals. In almost all cases both nationalities are granted a protection title—in the case of the Syrians, due to the war, and in the case of Afghans, due to the Taliban’s recent takeover of the country.
Of those migrants seeking asylum who are not granted any protection status, few are actually deported, with data published by the German government indicating that some two-thirds of all attempts to deport rejected asylum seekers fail.
Commenting on the latest asylum figures, the Union’s domestic policy spokesman, Alexander Throm (CDU) said: “The new BAMF numbers are dramatic. Over 100,000 people came to us from Syria, Afghanistan, and Turkey alone,” noting these people had crossed many safe countries, including those in Europe, before arriving at the German border.
With the traffic light government, word has long since spread around the world: Here, you only need to say the magic word “asylum,” whether or not there was actual escape and persecution. This is how people in our country will lose faith in the rule of law.”
“Meanwhile, Nancy Faeser isn’t lifting a finger to finally protect our borders,” Throm added.
AfD lawmaker Andreas Winhart also slammed the interior minister, writing in a Twitter post:
While Interior Minister Faeser plays the transparent “red sheriff” for the Hessian state election campaign, 175,000 first-time asylum applications have already been filed in Germany in the first seven months of this year. The government has lost all control over our borders. It’s time for a blue miracle! Therefore: Only AfD!
