TIRANA, Feb. 10, 2022 – Albanian citizens were the second most deported group in Germany last year, data released this week shows.
Deportations increased slightly year over year, the data shows, but continue to be lower than pre-pandemic levels.
Only Georgia had more citizens being deported than Albania. Both countries have visa-free travel to Germany and are deemed completely safe in terms of asylum seekers.
About a total of 11,982 deportations took place from Germany in 2021, up from 10,800 people in 2020. It’s still nearly half of the 22,100 people deported in 2019.
The data shows 908 people were deported to Albania. Kosovo saw 400 deportations, according to German news agency DPA and the Albanian section of German public broadcaster DW.
The lower deportations to Albania come as the German government has shifted gears making it easier for Albanians to go and work legally in Germany through work permits.
In addition to having a strong economy and plenty of jobs, Germany has become a magnet for Albanian migration thanks to the ability to do so legally.
The combination of deportation for failed asylum seekers and the ability to migrate legally has led to a lowering of asylum cases from Albania which had ballooned in previous years, migration experts note.
Total migration to Germany as a percentage of the whole has increased rapidly in Albania in recent years, with young workers leading the way.
Germany has changed its rules to make it easier to deport migrants it deems unable to seek asylum or who have broken rules.
The ruling German coalition said in a statement: “we are launching a deportation offensive, to consistently implement the departure from Germany, especially the expulsion of criminals and dangerous persons.”
According to the decision of the ruling coalition parties, migration agreements should be signed with the countries of origin in important countries of origin.
