MIGRATION

The number of vocational qualifications acquired abroad and recognised in Germany continued to rise in 2021, according to the latest official statistics. Most of the positive decisions were for medical professions and degrees – More foreign professional qualifications were recognised in Germany last year. This was particularly the case in the medical professions, as the Federal Statistical Office reported in …

Among those who have fled Ukraine since the beginning of the war in February are around 300,000 third-country nationals – persons who are neither from Ukraine nor the EU, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). Many of these are seeking refuge in Germany and now face uncertainty as a transitional regulation of their residency ends on 31 August …

“The living situation in Nigeria is catastrophic, inflation is driving food prices to unaffordable levels, hunger is rampant. The security situation is worse than ever. Boko Haram terror, violence, attacks and kidnappings create a climate of constant fear”

While rising costs of living have been globally observed, with inflation rates soaring to new highs in major economies, less-considered is the impact these costs have on migrants around the world who are often charged with financially supporting loved ones in their home countries. WorldRemit, a leading digital remittances company, conducted a multi-country study to determine the effects of the …

Nigeria’s Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, has directed the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), to allow Nigerians living in the diaspora to return to Nigeria with their expired passports. Aregbesola gave the directive on Wednesday in Lagos while responding to a complaint by a Nigerian-American citizen, Jamiu Kasumu, at the Alausa Passport Office in Ikeja, Lagos, during his unscheduled visit to …

Ghanaian-born Swiss-based Analytical Psychologist and Psychotherapist Esther Abena Keller calls attention to the increasing psychological and mental health risks of Africans in the Diaspora, who are challenged in specific ways, socially, economically and politically. Dr Keller identifies the specific reasons why diaspora Africans are especially susceptible to mental health challenges and what could be done to address these challenges ——– …

The federal cabinet has approved the draft law of the so-called ‘opportunity for right to remain’ (Chancen-Bleiberecht) for people who have been living in Germany for many years with a ‘tolerated stay permit’ called Duldung in German. The bill, which was okayed on Wednesday, will be submitted to the federal parliament, which still has to discuss it and can make …

At the last minute, the European Court of Human Rights stopped a controversial deportation flight from Britain to Rwanda for the time being. Despite the defeat, the British government reaffirmed its intention to stick to the plan. Despite the failure of the first deportation flight to Rwanda, the British government wants to stick to the controversial asylum agreement with the …

The federal government plans to reform the country’s migration laws. Among the features of the reform is the grant under certain conditions of regular residence permit to well-integrated asylum-seekers who have been living in Germany for more than five years with a so-called ‘tolerated stay permit’ (Duldung). A total of up to 105,000 people, whose deportation has been repeatedly suspended …

EU countries have generously been welcoming of the refugees from Ukraine since the Russian invasion of the country on 24 February. These are largely spared bureaucratic hurdles as they receive residence permits without individual assessment and have access to the job market, welfare benefits and other social support. In the shadow of the refugee crisis are the so-called third-country nationals …

Against the background of the difficult situation of non-Ukrainian nationals from Ukraine who were displaced by the war in the country and are currently seeking refuge in Germany, refugee, rights and diaspora support groups have issued an open letter to the Federal Interior Minister, demanding that all refugees from Ukraine should be treated equally. —— OPEN LETTER On the occasion …

Ukrainian refugees are entitled to regular social benefits as from 1 June, according to a law passed the Bundesrat, the upper chamber of the German federal parliament —— Refugees from Ukraine will be entitled to regular social benefits such as Hartz IV from June onwards. The Bundesrat approved a corresponding law on Friday (20 May), which implements an agreement between …

The International Organization for Migration (IOM) Germany has launched a survey of Third Country Nationals (TCNs) from Ukraine in Germany. The pilot survey aims to generate first knowledge pertaining to TCNs’ needs, challenges and also vulnerabilities in Germany in order to inform advocacy and projects by IOM Germany and relevant stakeholders. The survey is easily accessible online via numerous devices (Computer, …

The opinion of migration experts that refugees from Ukraine will stay longer in Germany as expected has now been supported by a member of the federal cabinet. Federal Labour Minister Hubertus Heil considers a longer stay of war refugees likely due to the level of destruction in many Ukrainian cities. “We have to be prepared for long periods of stay …

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on 24 February, more than 4 million Ukrainians and people of other nationalities resident in the country have fled to other European countries. According to the German government, more than 400,000 of the displaced are currently in Germany to seek refuge – among these are thousands of Africans. While the legal …

A group supporting African war refugees from Ukraine who are currently seeking refuge in Germany will hold two information sessions in May. The virtual events, ‘Information Session on Studying in Germany’ and ‘Legal Advice for Africans from Ukraine’, are organised by Help for Africans from Ukraine in Germany (HAUG) to provide orientation guide for the refugees. ‘Information Session on Studying …

The first beneficiaries of the new Hamburg regulation for third country students from Ukraine received their Fiktionsbescheinigung (Transitional Residence Permit) yesterday. A Fiktionsbescheinigung is issued if a decision has not yet been taken on an applied-for residence title or if the decision could not yet be taken. It is therefore a provisional right to stay in Germany. As we reported last week, …

Students fleeing the war in Ukraine should be able to continue their studies in Hamburg even if they come from a third country, the city’s authorities have now decided. Hamburg, one of Germany’s 16 federal states, now issues a 6-month provisional residency right to non-Ukrainian students from Ukraine. Speaking in an interview with Hamburg Journal, a spokesperson of the city, …

As the Federal Statistical Office announced in Wiesbaden on Tuesday, 22.3 million people living in Germany have a so-called migration background. This corresponds to a population share of 27.2 per cent. People with a migration background are those who themselves or at least one parent was not born with German citizenship. According to the data determined on the basis of …

The edict allowing people fleeing the war in Ukraine to enter Germany without a visa and reside in the country without a permit has been extended. The Ukraine Residence Transition Ordinance (UkraineAufenthÜV), issued by the Federal Ministry of the Interior on 7 March 2022, is currently valid until 23 May 2022. An amendment** of the edict was approved by the …