Berlin The federal government wants to give foreigners who have been living in Germany for more than five years a permanent perspective to stay in Germany. The draft law by Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) for the so-called right of residence is to be passed by the Federal Cabinet on Wednesday.
The traffic light coalition hopes that this will alleviate the acute staff shortages in many areas, as the migration expert of the Greens parliamentary group, Filiz Polat, explained to the Handelsblatt: “Countless companies will also benefit, especially from the medium-sized sector, which are desperately looking for workers and have been for a long time pragmatic procedures in the right of residence are penetrating.”
In the grand coalition, the “change of lanes” from the asylum procedure to labor migration was still a major contentious issue between the labor market and domestic politicians. The latter feared that the prospect of a job in Germany could be an additional incentive for people to leave their homeland.
Tolerated are foreigners who have not been recognized as being entitled to asylum or as refugees, but for whom there is a ban on deportation because, for example, they are threatened with torture or other inhuman treatment in their home country. According to the draft law, which is available to the Handelsblatt, around 242,000 tolerated foreigners were living in Germany at the end of last year, 136,605 of them for more than five years.
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Provided they have not committed a criminal offense or prevented deportation by providing false information about their identity, the latter should now be given the opportunity to obtain the requirements for a permanent right of residence within a year. Above all, this includes securing your own livelihood and having sufficient language skills.
Access to language and integration courses is to be expanded
“Life planning for people who have lived in Germany for many years should become more reliable if they meet certain integration requirements,” says the draft. If the requirements are not met within a year, the tolerated status applies again, which means that there is a risk of deportation.
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In the coalition agreement, the SPD, the Greens and the FDP agreed on a “new beginning in migration and integration policy that does justice to a modern immigration country”. The first migration package of the traffic light that has now been presented also provides for simplifications for labor migration by making temporary regulations from the Skilled Immigration Act that came into force in March 2020 indefinite.
This includes, for example, the rule that skilled workers with vocational training who are looking for a job in Germany can be granted a residence permit for up to six months. The coalition also makes it easier for foreign skilled workers and IT specialists to bring their families over. In order to better integrate refugees and improve their professional prospects, access to language and integration courses is also to be expanded.
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The coalition, on the other hand, wants to show toughness towards foreigners who have committed crimes. The draft law also contains regulations to implement expulsions more consistently. The federal government then wants to present a second migration package in autumn, as Labor Minister Hubertus Heil (SPD) recently explained in an interview with the Handelsblatt. According to the coalition agreement, the traffic light wants to add a points system to immigration law.
Municipalities warn of a “pull effect” in the social systems
The FDP is now pushing for this. “The draft law is not yet the decisive step to get the acute labor shortage in Germany under control,” said parliamentary group leader Konstantin Kuhle to the Handelsblatt. “This requires a targeted immigration offensive.”
The FDP politician mentioned the introduction of an opportunity card based on a points system, as planned in the coalition agreement, to give workers controlled access to the labor market. Germany must finally follow the example of successful immigration countries like Canada, stressed Kuhle. The coalition must therefore “put a comprehensive immigration law on the way this year”.
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The CDU domestic politician Alexander Throm accused the traffic light coalition of rewarding people who were not persecuted or in need of protection, who had to leave the country and who still persistently refused, with the chance of a right of residence. “In this way, the traffic light government is creating massive incentives for illegal migration to Germany in a time of crisis,” Throm told the Handelsblatt. Ultimately, the project means a departure from the principle of “ordering, controlling and limiting migration”.
The general manager of the German Association of Towns and Municipalities, Gerd Landsberg, welcomed the traffic light government’s first migration package, but called for further facilitation of immigration, because Germany’s prosperity depends on it: “That’s why we have to simplify the conditions for immigration and employment to make it more attractive for new workers to become.”
In particular, there is a need for faster recognition of foreign educational and professional qualifications: “This is a bottleneck when it comes to immigration, especially for particularly qualified people.” At the same time, however, it is important to “avoid pull effects in our social systems,” emphasized Landsberg.
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