- Lower number of illegal entries into Saxony in the first half of the year
In the first half of 2024, around 40 percent fewer people entered Saxony illegally compared to the previous year. The Federal Police Directorate in Pirna reported that from January to June, they detected 6,069 unauthorized entries. In the same period last year, there were 10,425 unauthorized entries. However, the six-month figures are only partially indicative due to the missing annual trend.
Notably, the number of unauthorized entries has significantly decreased from September 2023 to February 2024. In September last year, the Federal Police counted 7,422 unauthorized entries, which dropped to 4,994 in October and further to 845 in November. In February, the number fell to 647. Since then, the number of unauthorized entries has been slightly higher, ranging between around 1,083 in March and 940 in June.
Nationwide, the Federal Police also reported a decrease. In the first six months of this year, 42,307 people were registered as having entered Germany illegally, compared to 45,338 in the same period last year, marking a decrease of nearly seven percent.
Fixed controls at the borders with Poland, Czech Republic, and Switzerland
Federal Minister of the Interior Nancy Faeser (SPD) ordered fixed controls at the land borders with Poland, the Czech Republic, and Switzerland in mid-October last year and has since extended them several times. They are currently scheduled to end on December 15 for Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and Poland, and on November 11 for Austria. The aim is to combat smuggling crimes and limit irregular migration.
Fixed border controls are a contentious issue. Saxon Minister-President Michael Kretschmer (CDU) wants to maintain the border controls in Saxony in the long term. "The number of illegal entries into Saxony is still too high," he said during a visit to the Police Directorate in Görlitz in early July. Currently, Kretschmer is having the prerequisites for establishing a Saxon border police examined by a task force.
The police union for the Federal Police considers surveillance along the border to be more effective than fixed controls.
Despite the decrease in unauthorized entries nationwide and in Saxony, there continues to be a concern about migration issues. The long-term maintenance of border controls in Saxony, as proposed by Saxon Minister-President Michael Kretschmer, aims to further reduce irregular migration.
