Hyperactive and Incoherent Legislation and Policy: Germany’s Fragmented Migration Management Within the European Framework

Germany’s migration law and policy mainly follow the EU legal framework. Its asylum system is shaped according to the Common European Asylum System (CEAS), but immigration of third country nationals is restrictive and administratively cumbersome despite needing to attract foreign specialists. Germany is now active in deterring new arrivals while preserving a relatively broad ‘protection space’ with a recognition rate of more than 50% for persons admitted to the substantive asylum procedure. Two recent trends can be noted in an effort to streamline, manage, and curb migration to Germany: firstly, legislative hyperactivity owing to a multitude of amendments (e.g. Residence Act and Asylum Act), leading to a fragmented and incoherent legal framework; secondly, efficiency has trumped over critical legal scrutiny, intensifying anti-immigrant rhetoric in Germany, as illustrated by a selective transposition of European standards in law and practice. There is a shift towards national solutions and an increasing focus on forced returns - in line with the common developments in the European Union.