BERLIN, Sept 26 (Reuters) – Germany plans to halve the federal aid allocated for states to cover the expenses of receiving and integrating refugees next year, the finance ministry said on Tuesday, as part of belt-tightening amid soaring inflation and economic slowdown.
More than 1 million Ukrainians sought refuge in Germany after Moscow’s invasion in February 2022, and the number of refugees from other countries jumped by around 50% in 2022 compared with 2019, data from the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) showed.
For years following the 2015-16 refugee influx, when more than a million refugees arrived in Germany fleeing war and prosecution in the Middle East, Berlin had provided the states with a monthly per capita flat rate based on the number of refugees and took care of accommodation and integration costs.
But with a drop in incoming refugees in recent years, the country’s 16 states pushed Berlin to earmark a fixed amount for refugees’ expenses regardless of their number, changing the financing policy in 2021.
