The Federal Office for Migration and Refugees has announced an admission stop for non-mandatory integration courses, prompting criticism from the SPD parliamentary group. SPD parliamentary manager Dirk Wiese calls the measure hasty and harmful to the economy. The Turkish Community in Germany also expresses dissatisfaction.
In Berlin, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) informed integration course providers on Monday that no further participants will be admitted indefinitely if the course is not mandatory for them. This affects asylum seekers in process, tolerated persons, EU migrants, and Ukrainian refugees. The reason given is the costs of the courses. The BAMF is under the Federal Ministry of the Interior.
The announcement immediately drew opposition from the SPD parliamentary group. Parliamentary manager Dirk Wiese expressed irritation on Wednesday: "Very irritated by these reports. The last word has not been spoken yet." He criticized the "hasty measures" from the office of Federal Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) as a disservice to the German economy. Wiese stressed that Germany urgently needs skilled workers and immigration, for which integration courses are the best way to take root here.
Gökay Sofuoglu, chairman of the Turkish Community in Germany, reacted similarly. To the RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland (RND), he said: "A one-sided admission stop for language and integration courses undermines exactly the instruments that enable people to participate in the labor market and society." He added: "Language is participation — that is a strong and factual argument for such courses. Therefore, I consider the cuts wrong." Sofuoglu called for forward-looking policies instead of short-sighted budget blocks that could destroy the painstakingly built integration network.
