Germany offers asylum seekers extra cash to go home
Refugee organisation slams government for ‘trying to entice people to give up their rights’

The German government is offering failed asylum seekers an additional cash incentive to return home, as the country struggles to deal with the ongoing migrant crisis.
For years, Germany has provided financial help for those wishing to return to their countries, “including costs associated with travel and restarting life back home”, Deutsche Welle reports.
The new programme, announced this weekend, will offer families an extra €3,000 (£2,600) and individuals up to €1,000 (£880) if they leave by the end of February.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The money is intended to help asylum seekers with rent and other housing costs for up to a year after returning home, interior minister Thomas de Maiziere said yesterday.
But the German refugee organisation Pro Asyl has criticised the offer, calling it an underhanded strategy to reduce the number of migrants, DW reports.
The government “is trying to entice people to give up their rights in the basest manner,” managing director Gunter Burkhardt told the German news agency DPA.
The social welfare organisation of Germany’s Protestant churches has previously warned that these “get lost” bonuses are responsible for fuelling prejudice against migrants and refugees.
However, some are happy to accept the offer to return home, including one Afghan family that fled to Germany in 2013 after receiving death threats by the Taliban.
“Ever since we are here, we have been having problems finding work, learning the language, and our finances were too little,” the father told DW earlier this year.
The new programme comes as Chancellor Angela Merkel struggles to form a coalition government, with immigration policy one of the sticking points in negotiations.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Trump uses tariffs to upend Brazil's domestic politics
IN THE SPOTLIGHT By slapping a 50% tariff on Brazil for its criminal investigation into Bolsonaro, the Trump administration is brazenly putting its fingers on the scales of a key foreign election
-
3 questions to ask when deciding whether to repair or replace your broken appliance
the explainer There may be merit to fixing what you already have, but sometimes buying new is even more cost-effective
-
'Trump's authoritarian manipulation of language'
Instant Opinion Vienna has become a 'convenient target for populists' | Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Syria's returning refugees
The Explainer Thousands of Syrian refugees are going back to their homeland but conditions there remain extremely challenging
-
One year after mass protests, why are Kenyans taking to the streets again?
today's big question More than 60 protesters died during demonstrations in 2024
-
What happens if tensions between India and Pakistan boil over?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION As the two nuclear-armed neighbors rattle their sabers in the wake of a terrorist attack on the contested Kashmir region, experts worry that the worst might be yet to come
-
Why Russia removed the Taliban's terrorist designation
The Explainer Russia had designated the Taliban as a terrorist group over 20 years ago
-
Inside the Israel-Turkey geopolitical dance across Syria
THE EXPLAINER As Syria struggles in the wake of the Assad regime's collapse, its neighbors are carefully coordinating to avoid potential military confrontations
-
'Like a sound from hell': Serbia and sonic weapons
The Explainer Half a million people sign petition alleging Serbian police used an illegal 'sound cannon' to disrupt anti-government protests
-
The arrest of the Philippines' former president leaves the country's drug war in disarray
In the Spotlight Rodrigo Duterte was arrested by the ICC earlier this month
-
Ukrainian election: who could replace Zelenskyy?
The Explainer Donald Trump's 'dictator' jibe raises pressure on Ukraine to the polls while the country is under martial law