As Germany heads into a crucial election on February 23, 2025, misinformation about migration is spreading rapidly. FactCheckToday.com fact-checks two viral claims about deportations and asylum seekers.
Claim 1: “304,000 rejected asylum seekers are legally required to leave Germany but still receive support.”
🔴 Fact Check: Misleading
German MP Joana Cotar suggested that 304,000 rejected asylum seekers are required to leave Germany but still receive state benefits.
📌 Reality Check:
- Germany’s Federal Ministry of the Interior states that as of December 31, 2024, only 202,880 people were legally required to leave.
- The actual number of rejected asylum seekers among them is 128,355 (as of June 30, 2024).
- Most of these individuals (86%) cannot be deported due to legal protections such as a Duldung (toleration permit).
- Only 17,583 asylum seekers without legal protections are eligible for immediate deportation.
🔎 Verdict: The 304,000 claim is inflated and misleading.
Claim 2: “Only 0.5% of Syrians in Germany are entitled to asylum.”
🔴 Fact Check: Misleading
A post from AfD’s official X account claimed that only 5,090 out of 974,136 Syrians in Germany (0.5%) have been granted asylum.
📌 Reality Check:
- While technically true, this statistic ignores key legal protections available to Syrians.
- 88% of Syrian asylum seekers have legal protection in Germany (Federal Statistical Office, 2023).
- More than 330,000 Syrians have been granted subsidiary protection, meaning they cannot be deported due to risks of persecution.
- Following the collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in 2024, German politicians are debating Syrian repatriation, but no clear policy changes have been confirmed.
🔎 Verdict: The claim cherry-picks data while ignoring broader asylum protections, making it misleading.
Final Verdict: Misleading
🚨 Misinformation about migration is rampant ahead of Germany’s 2025 elections.
❌ The first claim inflates deportation numbers.
❌ The second claim omits critical facts about Syrian refugees’ legal protections.
📢 FactCheckToday.com urges readers to verify facts before engaging in political debates.
🔍 Get the truth. Stay informed.