Germany’s efforts to transfer migrants to other European Union member states under the Dublin Regulation have yielded limited results during the first half of 2025, according to data from the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees.
The statistics reveal a significant disparity between transfer requests initiated by Germany and actual relocations. Germany submitted 3,824 requests to Italy, accompanied by Italy’s agreement to 4,477 requests – some originating from the previous year. Despite the approvals, zero migrants were ultimately transferred from Germany to Italy.
Similar patterns emerged with requests to Greece, where Germany sought the return of 3,554 individuals. While Athens consented to 78 cases, only 20 migrants were successfully transferred.
Across all destinations, Germany lodged a total of 20,574 transfer requests in the first six months of 2025 to fulfill obligations concerning individuals who initially entered the EU elsewhere. However, only 3,109 migrants were actually returned.
Conversely, other EU nations transmitted 7,937 requests for Germany to accept migrants, with 2,326 of those requests fulfilled. The data highlights the ongoing complexities surrounding the Dublin Regulation and the challenges in implementing cross-border migration management within the EU.