A significantly smaller number of people applied for asylum in Germany in the first half of the year compared to the same period in 2025, according to German government data cited by DPA, BTA reports.
According to information from the German Interior Ministry, a total of 39,646 people applied for asylum for the first time in the first six months of the year.
For comparison, in the same period in 2025, the German Federal Office for Migration and Refugees registered 61,336 initial applications. The decline is even greater compared to the first half of 2024, when the number of applicants reached approximately 121,000 people.
The decline coincides with the introduction of stricter European and national measures in the field of migration. On June 12, one of the most significant reforms of the European asylum system came into force. The new rules provide for easier deportation of migrants from European Union member states to third countries, even when the applicants have no direct connection to them.
In parallel, German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt, who took office in April 2025, ordered the strengthening of border controls. He instructed the federal police to turn back asylum seekers at the border, with the exception of people in a vulnerable situation, including the sick, pregnant women and people in need of special protection.
According to the Interior Ministry, 14,270 people were returned or deported from Germany's borders in the first half of the year.
The authorities also reported that 494 people suspected of migrant smuggling were detained during the same period. In addition, police have located 4,074 people against whom arrest warrants have been issued.
The German government sees these results as a sign that measures taken to curb illegal migration are starting to have an effect.