Germany has significantly tightened its asylum policy towards Syrians, rejecting around 95 per cent of new applications as the country shifts from welcoming refugees to encouraging large-scale returns following the end of Syria’s civil war.
The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) now grants protection in only about five per cent of Syrian cases, according to a response to a Bundestag inquiry.
This marks a sharp reversal from the 2015-2016 migrant crisis, when recognition rates for Syrians often exceeded 90 per cent and even 2024 figures remained close to 100 per cent in many cases through subsidiary protection.
In October 2025, BAMF decided on 3,134 Syrian asylum applications and granted protection to just 26 people — one for political asylum, 10 for refugee status, nine for subsidiary protection and six with a ban on deportation.
That equates to an approval rate of about 0.8 per cent, with more than 1,900 applications rejected as manifestly unfounded in that month alone.
The change followed the fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime in late 2024.
BAMF initially suspended processing many Syrian cases to reassess country conditions, then resumed with stricter individual evaluations.
Large parts of Syria are now deemed safe enough for returns unless there is specific personal risks of persecution.
Young male applicants without strong claims have faced particularly tight scrutiny.
Overall asylum applications in Germany halved in 2025, falling to 113,236 first-time requests from 229,751 the previous year.
Syrian inflows dropped sharply, contributing to the broader decline.
Attention has now turned to the approximately 900,000 to 950,000 Syrians living in Germany, many of whom arrived during the 2015-2016 crisis.
After meeting Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Berlin at the end of March 2026, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz stated that around 80 per cent of Syrians currently in Germany should return to their homeland over the next three years, describing it as a shared goal to support Syria’s reconstruction.
Merz later backtracked and said that the 80 per cent figure originated from the Syrian side and that Berlin was “aware of the scale of the task”.
Priority would go to those without valid residence rights and criminal offenders. Well-integrated individuals (those in employment, with language skills, and no criminal record) would be more likely to remain.
The remarks sparked backlash from government coalition partners, NGOs and economists, who warned of labour shortages and questioned the feasibility and legal basis of mass returns.
Syrian authorities have emphasised voluntary returns and described the diaspora as a “strategic asset” for rebuilding the country, while resisting forced deportations.
Reviews of existing protection statuses, though, have so far shown high retention rates. In examined cases, BAMF confirmed protection in approximately 96 per cent to 97 per cent of Syrian instances, although the government is pushing for broader reassessments.
Since 2012, around 1.2 million people have moved from Syria to Germany. Many of those have received German citizenship.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has been forced to row back on an ambitious pledge that 80 per cent of Syrians currently living in Germany could return home within three years. https://t.co/NFPwic4uhv
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) April 1, 2026
