43,500 People Refused Entry at Germany’s Borders Due to Strict Checks

A total of 43,500 people have been turned away from Germany over the past 15 months as a result of border controls, Germany’s Interior Ministry has announced.

A spokesman for the Interior Ministry, Maximilian Kall, said that Germany’s border control launched in October 2023 in an effort to combat irregular migration is continuing and helped to decrease irregular migration by 34 per cent last year, Schengen.News reports. 

Kall said that the recent figures show that the majority of irregular migrants have been prevented from entering the country. 

However, he stressed that it is not possible to turn back everyone without discrimination at the borders, stressing that this would jeopardise cooperation with other neighbouring countries. 

Decline in Number of Asylum Applications 
A spokesman for the Interior Ministry, Maximilian Kall, told AA that asylum applications declined by 110,000 last year, in comparison to the previous year, stressing that irregular migration also declined by 34 per cent while the number of those deported during the same period surged by 22 per cent. 

Kall also said that an emergency cannot be declared for comprehensive rejections, stressing that there must be a real and serious threat to public order or security in the country for such a declaration to be regulated in the European Union. 

Introduction of Permanent Border Controls 
Arguing that border controls are effectively helping manage irregular migration, the frontrunner in the race to become Germany’s chancellor, Friedrich Merz, recently pledged to introduce permanent border controls. 

His comments came soon after the case of an Afghan asylum seeker who was taken into custody following a knife attack in Aschaffenburg on January 22, which left two people dead.

Border Controls May Be Prolonged Beyond March 
Germany informed the European Union of the decision to implement checks at all land borders on September 16, 2024. 

Back then, authorities in this country said the decision would be kept in place until March 15, 2025. However, in December 2024, the Interior Minister of Germany, Nancy Faeser, considered the measure effective, stressing that controls at Germany’s land borders may be extended beyond mid-March. 

Due to irregular migration and terrorism concerns, several European countries have implemented border controls as part of efforts to enhance their national security.

Source: https://schengen.news/43500-people-refused-entry-at-germanys-borders-due-to-strict-checks/