German border police report a decline in illegal entries into the country, with 24,490 recorded since the start of the year, a significant drop from the 34,634 reported in the same period last year and the 35,877 in the same period of 2023.
Despite the intensified border controls, the current level of illegal migration remains higher than in 2021, when the number of illegal entries was significantly lower, at 16,745, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The new Interior Minister, Alexander Dobrindt, instructed the border police to increase control measures in early May and the past 12 days have seen a notable increase in illegal entries, with 2,320 recorded.
However, if the current trend continues, the number of illegal entries would be around 15 percent lower than the previous year’s level. Not all indicators suggest a rapid impact, as the number of asylum applications in Germany has increased in the first week after the intensification of border controls, with 1,535 applications registered, compared to 1,414 in the previous week.