Today, the CDU will present a draft bill on the “Zustrombegrenzungsgesetz” to the Bundestag for a vote. The name of the bill promises more than it can deliver. A genuine limitation of the influx of migrants is not to be expected from the bill.
The draft consists of three key points. In effect, the CDU is proposing to reinsert the word “Begrenzung” into the Aufenthaltsgesetz, which was removed in 2023. The first paragraph of the Aufenthaltsgesetz originally stated that the law aimed to regulate and limit the influx of foreigners. The removal of the word “Begrenzung” by the coalition government in November 2023 had no concrete implications. The reinsertion is merely a signal that the limitation of migration is an aspect to be regulated by the Aufenthaltsgesetz.
Additionally, the CDU’s draft bill proposes to suspend family reunification for individuals who have been granted subsidiary protection in Germany. Subsidiary protection can be granted to individuals who cannot demonstrate a valid asylum claim but still require protection. Currently, there are 351,400 individuals in Germany with subsidiary protection, out of a total of 3.5 million refugees in the country.
Furthermore, the draft bill grants the federal police the power to immediately take into custody non-resident foreigners without a valid residence permit, in order to ensure their deportation. The provision aims to simplify the initiation of deportations for foreigners without a valid residence permit, who are often encountered at train stations, which are under the control of the federal police.
The bill has a good chance of being approved today in the Bundestag, as the AfD, the BSW and the FDP have signaled their intention to support it.
Despite the approval in the Bundestag, it is unlikely that the bill will come into effect quickly, as it still needs to be passed by the Bundesrat. The Bundesrat is likely to deliberate on the bill after the Bundestag elections and it is uncertain whether it will be approved.
Even if the bill is approved, the current situation is unlikely to change significantly, as the three opposition parties – the SPD, the Left and the Greens – warn of the “Brandmauer” being breached. They consider cooperation with the AfD to be taboo, while the CDU has so far supported the exclusion of the AfD. The CDU’s 5-point plan for migration has been endorsed by the AfD.