The entire discussion surrounding the transfer of immigrants from Germany to Poland would not be taking place if Germany had a well-developed and effective means of sending unwanted migrants back to their countries of origin.
In light of attacks and crimes committed by migrants, the German public is demanding their effective deportation. Politically, it is important for Germany to at least partially meet this demand. However, from a purely legal and purely practical standpoint, deportations to countries such as Afghanistan or Syria are not being carried out. While Germany technically has the legal authority to deport any foreign national who poses a threat to public safety and order or to other important interests of the Federal Republic of Germany, such situations are extremely rare.
The vast majority of immigrants that Germany wants to get rid of apply for asylum in Germany. If an application is processed and the person is not granted asylum in Germany, they are, in principle, required to leave the country. But a democratic state — including Poland — is not permitted to deport people to places where their life, health, or liberty is at risk. This is regulated by the Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees, as well as by Polish and German law. In 2024, 18,384 people were deported from Germany. The number of people qualifying for deportation from Germany last year was 48,000.
The biggest barrier is countries of origin that refuse to accept their own citizens back. A typical example is Iran, which categorically refuses to accept back individuals whose asylum claims have been denied. The country has no readmission agreements with Germany, and cooperation with Iranian authorities is minimal. Similarly, in the case of Afghanistan, deportations have been virtually suspended since the Taliban took power in August 2021. Germany has no diplomatic relations with the Taliban, and the security situation makes deportation impossible. As of December 31, 2023, approximately 322,600 people from Afghanistan were living in Germany, of whom around 252,000 had been recognized as refugees.
The practical execution of deportations is also difficult because the individuals targeted for deportation flee and do not reveal themselves so that the deporting police cannot find them. If they are caught, they try not to board the plane by feigning illness or self-harming. After a failed deportation, a large proportion of immigrants are released because Germany does not have enough prison capacity to hold these individuals until the next deportation attempt.
On the eve of the state elections in Thuringia and Saxony on August 30, 2024, Germany deported convicted criminals from Afghanistan to Kabul for the first time.
These were Afghan nationals and all of them were convicted criminals who had no right to reside in Germany and were subject to deportation orders,
said German government spokesperson Steffen Hebestreit. On February 17, 47 people were deported to Iraq. The ministry did not provide further details.
[Aleksandra Fedorska is a journalist for Polish and German media]
