Latest news with #WeltamSonntag
Local Germany
19 hours ago
- Politics
- Local Germany
Germany sees record number of foreigners gaining citizenship
Germany recorded its highest number of naturalisations ever in 2024, with at least 249,901 people granted citizenship, up nearly 50,000 on the year before, according to data from 13 states reported by Welt am Sonntag. Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Schleswig-Holstein did not report data. The surge follows major reforms to Germany's citizenship law introduced by the previous SPD-led government, which made naturalisation possible after just five years – and in exceptional cases as little as three. The previous government also legalised dual citizenship for non-EU citizens. In many states, Syrians made up the largest proportion of new citizens, followed by Turkish nationals. In North Rhine-Westphalia alone, more than 24,000 Syrians were naturalised, while the figure was over 9,000 in Bavaria. The number of Turkish citizens obtaining German nationality also spiked, increasing by over 80 percent in one state. Other groups with notable increases included Russian nationals. Despite the controversy over fast-track nationalisations, only a handful of people have been granted citizenship this way, the data reveals. Advertisement READ ALSO: Who will be most affected by move to end fast-track German citizenship? In Berlin, 382 people were made citizens under the fast-track programme, while in Rhineland-Palatinate the figure was 20, Baden-Württemberg 16, and Bremen zero. Take-up may be exceptionally low because requirements to be nationalised this way remain very high, including C1 German and evidence of exceptional professional and personal achievements, which many people struggle to achieve in just three years. Advertisement Many states reported that new citizens had lived in Germany far longer than legally required. Baden-Württemberg reported that the average person nationalised in the state had lived in Germany for 14 years. Still, the CDU-SPD coalition plans to scrap turbo nationalisations . Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said the move would eliminate a migration 'pull factor'. TELL US: Are you affected by Germany's plan to scrap fast-track citizenship? However, the broader reforms – including the five-year timeline and dual citizenship – will stay. But the Association of German Cities warned that immigration laws are changing too frequently, overburdening local authorities and causing long processing delays.
The Sun
3 days ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Germany hopes for EU deal on sending failed asylum seekers to third countries, minister says
GERMANY'S interior minister is hoping the European Union can reach a bloc-wide agreement on sending failed asylum seekers who cannot go home to safe countries near their original homelands. Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservatives won February's national election on a promise to bring down immigration levels, which opinion polls showed many voters regarded as being out of control, although numbers have been falling for over a year. In an interview with the Welt am Sonntag newspaper published on Saturday, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said the approach of using third countries could work only if there was a Europe-wide consensus. 'We need third countries that are prepared to take migrants who are objectively unable to return to their home countries,' he told the newspaper. Earlier this month, the EU's executive Commission proposed a scheme that would let member states reject asylum applications from migrants who passed through a 'safe' third country on their way to the bloc. The proposals, criticised by rights groups, have yet to be adopted by national governments or the European Parliament. 'No individual EU member state can create this model on its own: it will have to happen on an EU level,' Dobrindt said. 'We are preparing the foundations for that right now.' Dobrindt's initial promises to tighten border controls on taking office angered neighbours who protested at plans to return to their territory those migrants found not to have a right to enter Germany. An Italian plan to process asylum seekers picked up at sea in Albania has stalled amid Italian court challenges. A scheme by Britain, which is not an EU member, under its previous Conservative government to send asylum seekers who arrived in Britain without permission to Rwanda was scrapped by Prime Minister Keir Starmer when he took office last year.
The Sun
3 days ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Germany pushes EU deal on third-country asylum transfers
GERMANY'S interior minister is hoping the European Union can reach a bloc-wide agreement on sending failed asylum seekers who cannot go home to safe countries near their original homelands. Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservatives won February's national election on a promise to bring down immigration levels, which opinion polls showed many voters regarded as being out of control, although numbers have been falling for over a year. In an interview with the Welt am Sonntag newspaper published on Saturday, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said the approach of using third countries could work only if there was a Europe-wide consensus. 'We need third countries that are prepared to take migrants who are objectively unable to return to their home countries,' he told the newspaper. Earlier this month, the EU's executive Commission proposed a scheme that would let member states reject asylum applications from migrants who passed through a 'safe' third country on their way to the bloc. The proposals, criticised by rights groups, have yet to be adopted by national governments or the European Parliament. 'No individual EU member state can create this model on its own: it will have to happen on an EU level,' Dobrindt said. 'We are preparing the foundations for that right now.' Dobrindt's initial promises to tighten border controls on taking office angered neighbours who protested at plans to return to their territory those migrants found not to have a right to enter Germany. An Italian plan to process asylum seekers picked up at sea in Albania has stalled amid Italian court challenges. A scheme by Britain, which is not an EU member, under its previous Conservative government to send asylum seekers who arrived in Britain without permission to Rwanda was scrapped by Prime Minister Keir Starmer when he took office last year.
LBCI
3 days ago
- Business
- LBCI
Germany hopes for EU deal on sending failed asylum seekers to third countries, minister says
Germany's interior minister is hoping the European Union can reach a bloc-wide agreement on sending failed asylum seekers who cannot go home to safe countries near their original homelands. Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservatives won February's national election on a promise to bring down immigration levels, which opinion polls showed many voters regarded as being out of control, although numbers have been falling for over a year. In an interview with the Welt am Sonntag newspaper published on Saturday, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said the approach of using third countries could work only if there was a Europe-wide consensus. Reuters
Straits Times
3 days ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Germany hopes for EU deal on sending failed asylum seekers to third countries, minister says
Germany hopes for EU deal on sending failed asylum seekers to third countries, minister says BERLIN - Germany's interior minister is hoping the European Union can reach a bloc-wide agreement on sending failed asylum seekers who cannot go home to safe countries near their original homelands. Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservatives won February's national election on a promise to bring down immigration levels, which opinion polls showed many voters regarded as being out of control, although numbers have been falling for over a year. In an interview with the Welt am Sonntag newspaper published on Saturday, Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt said the approach of using third countries could work only if there was a Europe-wide consensus. "We need third countries that are prepared to take migrants who are objectively unable to return to their home countries," he told the newspaper. Earlier this month, the EU's executive Commission proposed a scheme that would let member states reject asylum applications from migrants who passed through a "safe" third country on their way to the bloc. The proposals, criticised by rights groups, have yet to be adopted by national governments or the European Parliament. "No individual EU member state can create this model on its own: it will have to happen on an EU level," Dobrindt said. "We are preparing the foundations for that right now." Dobrindt's initial promises to tighten border controls on taking office angered neighbours who protested at plans to return to their territory those migrants found not to have a right to enter Germany. An Italian plan to process asylum seekers picked up at sea in Albania has stalled amid Italian court challenges. A scheme by Britain, which is not an EU member, under its previous Conservative government to send asylum seekers who arrived in Britain without permission to Rwanda was scrapped by Prime Minister Keir Starmer when he took office last year. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
