Significantly fewer people have sought asylum in Germany this year, the country's Interior Ministry announced. Between January and October, 97,277 people applied to the Federal Republic - a drop of half from the same period in 2024, when their number was 199,947.
"Migration policy is yielding results"
The decline in interest in Germany by migrants is a trend, as is also clear from the authorities' data. "Our migration policy is yielding results. We have significantly reduced the factors that make Germany a magnet for illegal migration," Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt commented in this regard.
According to Dobrindt, border controls have also seriously reduced the number of migrants entering the country. Since May this year, around 18,600 people have been turned back at the border - either not being allowed at the border itself or being deported after being detained.
The Federal Minister of the Interior announced that additional efforts would be made in this area. "We will continue consistently on this path of changing migration policy and increase the number of returns", he told "Bild".
Will the Syrians be sent back?
In recent months, Balkan countries have also made efforts to cut off migrant corridors into Europe. The fall of the Assad regime in Syria is also a factor in terms of migration. In recent years, Syrians have been the largest group among asylum seekers in Germany. In the first nine months of 2025, however, the number of asylum applications from the country, which has been torn apart by civil war for years, fell by nearly 40,000 compared to the same period the previous year.
The issue of Syrian refugees is dividing the German government. Dobrindt has spoken of reviewing the status of Syrians in Germany and deportations, including of people who have not committed crimes and do not pose a danger. This week, however, Foreign Minister Johann Wadeful visited Damascus. There, he commented that he had never seen such destruction in his life. "It is really difficult for a person to live with dignity here", said Germany's top diplomat. That is why he is also reserved about the possible return of Syrian refugees from Germany. This "is currently only possible to a very limited extent", Wadeful commented.