Despite years of political promises to regain control over migration, nearly one million people whose asylum applications have been formally rejected continue to live in Germany.
The new figures, released by the federal government in response to an inquiry from the AfD and obtained by Bild, show that as of Oct. 31, 2025, a total of 934,553 foreign nationals were registered in the Central Register of Foreigners as having a rejected asylum claim. In the summer of 2023, that figure stood at 896,065.
The largest groups among rejected applicants are Afghans (153,550), Turks (93,762), and Kosovars (68,261). In addition, Germany hosts around 2.4 million foreigners with recognized protection status, including more than a million Ukrainians. Others include 43,203 individuals entitled to asylum under the Basic Law, 696,985 recognized refugees covered by the Geneva Convention, and 420,358 beneficiaries of subsidiary protection.
“There have been many problems with the obligation to leave the country for years,” Professor Daniel Thym of the University of Konstanz told Bild. “Only a minority comply with the legal obligation to leave, are deported, or leave voluntarily with financial support.” He noted that many individuals receive permission to remain even when their livelihood is not secure, meaning social benefits often continue.
The legal obligation to leave takes effect once a negative asylum decision is final or when no suspensive effect applies. However, appeals and temporary suspensions often delay removals. At the end of 2024, 72,500 people who were legally required to leave had been living in Germany for over six years.
AfD lawmaker René Springer argued that the status quo signals a loss of state authority. “If rejected asylum applications have no consequences and protection instead becomes the rule, that is not humanism, but a loss of state control,” he said.
According to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, Germany carried out 19,538 deportations between January and October 2025, already surpassing the previous year’s total, but the figure remains a drop in the ocean.
The numbers have prompted harsh criticism. AfD co-leader Alice Weidel wrote on X: “One million rejected asylum seekers live in Germany, and they are not being deported: Is this the ominous ‘migration turnaround’ that Merz and the CDU promised during the election campaign?”
Conservative commentator Anabel Schunke added that the system no longer retains public legitimacy. “If it doesn’t matter whether someone is here legally or illegally, because it makes no difference anyway, then it’s no wonder that the current asylum system enjoys virtually no acceptance in society. This is absolutely insane.”
In alle Europese landen zullen politici asiel ‘op orde’ moeten krijgen.
Dat kan alleen door internationale verdragen te wijzigen en ─ als dat onvoldoende is ─ op te zeggen.
Regel dat, juist ter bescherming van onze rechtsstaat en democratie.https://t.co/wftWwGvgKJ pic.twitter.com/ggpJT86JnS
— Dr. Jan van de Beek (@demo_demo_nl) November 24, 2025Historian and author Dr. Rainer Zitelmann said the scale of unresolved cases is overwhelming German infrastructure, from the courts to local councils. “Nearly one million rejected asylum seekers live here, and incidentally, they are crippling the administrative courts, which now deal with related lawsuits in 50 percent of their cases. And the finances of the municipalities are imploding,” he said.
The political and social tensions surrounding migration have deepened as concerns over public safety rise. According to the latest ARD “Deutschlandtrend” poll, only half of respondents feel very or rather safe in Germany, a fall of five points since February. Some 48 percent view public spaces as rather or very unsafe. In 2017, 75 percent of Germans reported feeling safe.
Interior Ministry data released in October highlighted the scale of crime involving arrivals over the past decade. Between 2015 and 2024, Syrian suspects were linked to 135,668 criminal offenses — amounting to one every 39 minutes over ten years. Other major source countries also showed high totals, including 82,960 cases involving Afghan suspects, 69,946 involving Iraqis, 39,918 involving Moroccans, and 32,383 involving Algerians. Across the top ten countries of origin, more than 460,000 crimes were recorded in the decade.
Government data also showed that 63,977 women were victims of sexual violence in 2024, with foreigners accounting for 35 percent of perpetrators despite making up 15 percent of the population. Women were also the victims in more than 265,000 physical assaults and over 155,000 crimes against personal freedom.
