The number of asylum seekers filing lawsuits against rejected protection applications has risen sharply again in 2025, according to an analysis of the “Deutsche Richterzeitung” reported by the Funke Media Group in its Wednesday edition. Between 2023 and 2025, the volume of cases brought before Verwaltungsgerichte (administrative courts) doubled. In 2023 there were 71,885 claims, in 2024 the figure climbed to 100,494, and in 2025 new filings reached 143,221.
“The record inflow of cases and the ever‑growing case backlog must serve as a final wake‑up call for politics to act now” said Sven Rebehn, federal CEO of the German Judges’ Association (Deutscher Richterbund), to Funke Media. He warned that a national shortage of about 2,000 prosecutors and several hundred administrative judges is jeopardising the system. “If the government fails to resolve these glaring problems quickly, the already scratched trust in politics will suffer further damage” he added.
Regional data show that the surge in asylum‑related lawsuits is especially pronounced in certain states. Baden‑Württemberg recorded a 162 % increase-22,937 main‑case proceedings since 2023. In Sachsen‑Anhalt the rise was 155 %, in Bayern 142 %, and in Brandenburg 131 %. Nordrhein-Westfalen reported a total of 22,084 cases in 2025, a 56 % rise from 2023. Rebehn noted that “administrative courts are currently the second‑largest focus in German justice”. The goal, set by the federal states in 2023, to fast‑track asylum claims and resolve them within six months remains distant. On average, courts still take nearly twice as long nationwide, with Berlin and Hessen surpassing 16 months.
The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) has accelerated its own decision‑making on asylum determinations compared to 2023, yet rejection rates have risen in recent years. The Judges’ Association sees both factors as key drivers behind the sharp uptick in lawsuits. BAMF reports that the number of pending asylum cases has dropped to 87,000 from the previous year-“more than halved”. Meanwhile, asylum applications themselves have fallen for months. The average duration of an asylum case is now just shy of eleven months, although many cases resolve in about three months.