German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt is planning to present a law in Cabinet to restrict family reunification for certain refugees, his ministry confirmed to dpa on Sunday, reported dpa.
Relatives of refugees with limited protection status are only allowed to join them in Germany after two years, as per the minister's plans, which are in line with the coalition deal of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservatives and the Social Democrats (SPD).
Cases deemed particularly urgent are to be exempt from the new family reunification rules.
"Until now, 1,000 people per month have been able to follow their families to Germany. That is now over," Dobrindt had told Germany's Bild tabloid, which first reported on the plans.
"We must significantly reduce the pull factors to Germany. This is another way of showing that migration policy in Germany has changed," the minister added.
Germany's new conservative-led government, which took office on May 6, has vowed to crack down on illegal migration. Within the first 24 hours of taking office, Dobrindt ordered intensified checks and allowed police to turn back asylum seekers at the border, despite critics saying the move violates EU law.
Germany already suspended family reunification for refugees without asylum status between March 2016 and July 2018, citing overburdened capacities.
Since August 2018, up to 1,000 relatives of refugees without this status have been allowed to enter Germany every month.
The previous centre-left administration of chancellor Olaf Scholz had planned to lift all restrictions on family reunification for the group, but failed to implement the plans before the coalition government collapsed in November last year.
More than 30 non-governmental organizations have called on Berlin to refrain from restricting family reunification again.
- Germany
- To curb
- Migrant
- Family reunification
Source: www.dailyfinland.fi
