12.11.2025, 15:46 | By Michael Donhauser, dpa | Edited by Amit Alhat, TIN24
Credit: Moritz Frankenberg/dpa
Germany’s migration policy under the conservative-led coalition government has had little real effect on asylum numbers, according to migration researcher Victoria Rietig.
Speaking at the Nuremberg Migration Days organized by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF), Rietig said the noticeable decline in first-time asylum applications compared to last year is mainly due to changes in Syria’s political environment and international agreements, not the national policy measures introduced by Berlin.
Rietig, who heads the Center for Migration at the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP), cited BAMF statistics showing 142,495 asylum applications filed in the first ten months of 2025, including 97,277 first-time applications—roughly half as many as in the same period of 2024.
Between January and April, before the new government took office in May, first-time applications had already dropped by 43 percent. The number has remained stable since then, Rietig said, while repeat applications have sharply increased—up by 153 percent year on year. Many Afghan women have reapplied out of fear of losing their protection status and possible deportation.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s center-right coalition has pledged a tougher approach to migration, including rejecting more asylum seekers with criminal backgrounds. However, Rietig noted that border rejections have been minimal—around 1,000 cases in the first six months, averaging just six per day.
She argued that the new measures are generating high operational costs without delivering measurable results. “The so-called migration turnaround has so far been not very effective when measured by the numbers,” Rietig said.
Instead, she recommended expanding international cooperation, pointing to the EU’s 2023 migration deal with Tunisia as a model for more sustainable outcomes.
Author: The India News 24
TIN24 (The India News 24) The India News 24 (TIN24) is a Mumbai-based news Digital Media focusing on breaking news, local and regional issues in India, with content primarily in Marathi. It was established with an X (Twitter) presence since July 2022. Owner & News Editor: Amit Alhat Education: BA in Mass Communication Journalism (Graduate) Experience: 12 years in journalism Platforms: - Website: https://theindianews24.in - X (Twitter): https://x.com/the_indianews24 - YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@theindianews247 - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/theindianews_24
