It is expected that Germany will have taken in a total of 1,2 million migrants once the year is up, 35 percent more than during the 2015 refugee crisis. Local authorities in German cities report being stretched by the large number of new arrivals and are now asking the German government to supply more cash for resources.

Germany welcomes historic number of migrants in 2022

According to a report by the Welt am Sonntag newspaper, 2022 saw a record number of migrants come to Germany. It is estimated that by the end of 2022, the number will reach 1,2 million, 35 percent more than came to Germany during the 2015 refugee crisis.

Most people who arrived in Germany as refugees in 2022 have been fleeing Ukraine following Putin’s February invasion. Almost one year since the war began, an estimated 100 new Ukrainian refugees arrive every day in Berlin alone. In 2015, the majority of refugees were fleeing war in Syria.

2022 also saw 200.000 people make claims for asylum in Germany, the majority of whom were from Syria, Afghanistan, Turkey and Iraq.

Local authorities struggling to help refugees

According to the Welt am Sonntag report, unnamed officials representing state immigration authorities said that Germany’s federal government urgently needs to provide local authorities with more money to support refugees. In 2022, the German government supplied 3,5 billion euros to fund resources and accommodation for refugees arriving in the country. 

While a further 2,75 billion has been announced for 2023, the budget might not be enough to support what German MEP Manfred Weber predicts may be a “dramatic winter of refuge.” According to Deutsche Welle, analysts have suggested that hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians may make the long journey to Germany this winter as the cold weather moves in and problems with Ukraine’s remaining supply of energy continue.

Speaking to Welt am Sonntag, Weber warned that, along with the Netherlands, Belgium and Austria, “Germany is currently sleepwalking into a new migration crisis.”