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E.g., 11/29/2023
Country Resource - Germany
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Germany

DE
  • Population..............................................................................84,220,184 (2023 est.)
  • Population growth rate ................................................................-0.12% (2023 est.)
  • Birth rate.....................................................9.02 births/1,000 population (2023 est.)
  • Death rate................................................11.97 deaths/1,000 population (2023 est.)
  • Net migration rate................................1.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)
  • Ethnic groups*.........................German 86.3%, Turkish 1.8%, Polish 1%, Syrian 1%, Romanian 1%, other/stateless/unspecified 8.9% (2020 est.)

* Data represent population by nationality

CIA World Factbook

BerlinSeesSyria ekvidi Flickr
Profile
August 31, 2016

The New Reality: Germany Adapts to Its Role as a Major Migrant Magnet

Although long one of the world's top migrant destinations, only in the recent past has Germany come to acknowledge and adjust to its role as a country of immigration. Its welcoming approach—a relatively new development—has been put to the test amid massive humanitarian inflows beginning in 2015. This country profile examines Germany's history on immigration and highlights current and emerging debates.

Recent Activity

Feature
October 1, 2009
Wedding Bells Are Ringing: Increasing Rates of Intermarriage in Germany

Intermarriage is considered a test of integration: the higher the rate, the more integrated the group. Olga Nottmeyer of DIW Berlin finds that while immigrants from Turkey, by far Germany's largest immigrant group, have had low rates of intermarriage in the first generation, intermarriage rates among second-generation Turkish men are increasing.

Top Ten
December 3, 2007
Integration Means Belonging

All the nuanced meanings of "belonging" describe integration trends in industrialized countries in 2007, including the United States, Switzerland, the Netherlands, and Germany.

Feature
July 9, 2007
Germany Strives to Integrate Immigrants with New Policies

With reforms to its 2005 immigrant integration law and the unveiling of a National Integration Plan, Germany expects to improve integration and come closer to the European Union's Common Basic Principles on immigrant integration. MPI's Eric Leise reports.

Feature
April 5, 2007
Germany to Regularize "Tolerated" Asylum Seekers

Approximately 50,000 of Germany's 170,000 tolerated asylum seekers are expected to will qualify for a residency permit under a law passed in March 2007. MPI's Eric Leise reports.

Top Ten
December 1, 2005
Challenges of Immigrant Integration: Muslims in Europe

Only recently have European politicians and public opinion leaders talked about the need to focus on the integration of immigrants and their children.

Feature
October 1, 2005
Schengen and the Free Movement of People Across Europe

Schengen eliminated border controls between European countries, and established a common external border. MPI's Julia Gelatt explains the changes brought by Schengen and the effects Schengen has had on European border control, visa, and asylum policies.

Feature
August 1, 2005
New Research Challenges Notion of German "Brain Drain"

For years, Germany has been concerned about losing its top minds to the United States. While highly skilled individuals are leaving for the U.S., most of the increase is accounted for by temporary migrants, as Claudia Diehl of the German Federal Institute for Population Research and MPI's David Dixon reveal.

Feature
August 1, 2004
New German Law Skirts Comprehensive Immigration Reform

Rainer Münz of the Hamburg Institute of International Economics analyzes Germany's long-awaited immigration law.

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Profile
July 1, 2004
Germany: Immigration in Transition

Since the 1990s, analysts have pointed to Germany's ongoing need for immigrants to bolster economic development and maintain a dynamic workforce, given the rapid aging of the country's population. However, a process of policy review that began in 2001 with a government commission's report on immigration and integration policy only recently overcame legislative gridlock.

Feature
February 1, 2004
Fewer Ethnic Germans Immigrating to Ancestral Homeland
The number of ethnic Germans born abroad who immigrated to their ancestral homeland in 2003 was much lower than the previous year, reports Veysel Oezcan of Humboldt University Berlin.

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Transatlantic Council Statement report, January 2020
Reports
January 2020

Rebuilding Community after Crisis: Striking a New Social Contract for Diverse Societies (Transatlantic Council Statement)

Addressing the deep-rooted integration challenges unearthed by large-scale migration and rapid social change will require a combination of strategies. Governments in Europe and North America must create a new social contract for increasingly diverse societies that are confronting cycles of disruption. This report sketches a blueprint for an adaptive process oriented by skill needs rather than national origins.

Integrating Refugees and Asylum Seekers into the German Economy and Society: Empirical Evidence and Policy Objectives
Reports
December 2019

Integrating Refugees and Asylum Seekers into the German Economy and Society: Empirical Evidence and Policy Objectives

As the top destination in Europe for asylum seekers in recent years, Germany has rolled out a number of integration policy changes. Based on an early look at how newcomers’ integration is progressing, the report finds the policies have had ambiguous implications. The report also provides insights into the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of the asylum seeker and refugee population.

Cover of the report Volunteers and Sponsors: A Catalyst for Refugee Integration?
Reports
November 2019

Volunteers and Sponsors: A Catalyst for Refugee Integration?

Rising numbers of refugees and asylum seekers in Europe and North America have been matched by an equally unprecedented outpouring of public support. How can service providers most effectively harness this volunteering? This report considers where community members can add the most value to integration efforts and offers recommendations for how policymakers can facilitate the effective engagement of communities in integration initiatives.

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Reports
October 2019

Legal Migration for Work and Training: Mobility Options to Europe for Those Not in Need of Protection

As EU Member States struggle to deliver on the European Union's call to expand channels for foreign workers, they should focus more on attracting the middle- and low-skilled third-country nationals needed by the labor market yet for whom few opportunities for admission exist. They also would do well to consider their migration policies in light of labor market, foreign policy, and development objectives, rather than as a means to reduce irregular migration, this report cautions.

coverthumb Social Innovation Refugee Inclusion 2019
Reports
June 2019

Social Innovation for Refugee Inclusion: From Bright Spots to System Change

In the three years since the European migration and refugee crisis vividly captured public attention, a wave of innovative initiatives has emerged to help newcomers settle into receiving societies. Now, as the sense of crisis abates, this report explores what these initiatives will need to do to outlast the hype and produce lasting change on key integration issues such as housing, economic inclusion, and community building.

Coverthumbnail TCM NativistPopulism.pdf_
Reports
November 2018

In Search of a New Equilibrium: Immigration Policymaking in the Newest Era of Nativist Populism

In many recent European and U.S. elections, candidates touting nativist populist and anti-immigrant platforms have enjoyed rising support. As populism moves from the fringes into the mainstream, this report takes stock of the economic and social forces driving its rise, the diverse ways populists are influencing immigration policymaking, and what it will take to build a new center around immigration and integration issues.

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Reports
November 2018

When Facts Don’t Matter: How to Communicate More Effectively about Immigration’s Costs and Benefits

Emotionally charged and anecdotal narratives about immigrants often seem to drown out arguments made on the basis of robust data and evidence. Why is that? This report explores how new technologies, the human brain, and political communication are reshaping the role of facts in public debates. The report concludes with an examination of what it takes to make the “expert consensus” resonate with skeptical publics.

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Reports
October 2018

Tech Jobs for Refugees: Assessing the Potential of Coding Schools for Refugee Integration in Germany

Faced with an aging workforce and growing skill shortages in the IT sector, some German policymakers and industry experts have seized on the idea that recently arrived refugees could be a natural fit for careers in tech. This report examines the case for training refugees for IT jobs and explores the variety of coding schools that have cropped up in Germany to help newcomers succeed in the field.

Coverthumb Schain PopulismUSandEurope
Reports
August 2018

Shifting Tides: Radical-Right Populism and Immigration Policy in Europe and the United States

Even as populist radical-right parties have experienced mixed electoral success, their ideas have gained traction in Europe and the United States. This report analyzes the economic, political, and social factors behind the rise in support for the radical-right agenda, and the impact of this trend on immigration policymaking and the broader political landscape on both sides of the Atlantic.

Coverthumb_ECECforRefugeeChildren
Reports
April 2018

Responding to the ECEC Needs of Children of Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Europe and North America

With many young children among the refugees and asylum seekers arriving in Europe and North America in recent years, policymakers and service providers are grappling with the task of designing and scaling up critical early childhood services. This report examines the approaches taken in nine key host countries, highlighting common challenges and promising practices.

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