Germany and Austria have halted visa processing after the fall of Damascus to armed opposition groups
Germany has stopped processing refugee applications from Syrian nationals, pending an assessment of the security situation in the country following the toppling of the Assad government by armed opposition groups, Der Spiegel has reported.
According to the outlet, the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) in Berlin on Monday ordered that decisions be halted on applications from Syrian asylum seekers. The move will likely affect over 47,000 pending applications, although it will have no impact on existing decisions, Der Spiegel reported, citing the migration service.
Various opposition groups, including Hayat Tahrir-al-Sham (HTS) jihadists and US-backed Free Syrian Army fighters, seized control of Damascus on Sunday following a swift advance across the country. The Syrian Army retreated and former President Bashar Assad and his family have been granted asylum in Russia.
The situation in Syria is unclear and it is too difficult to predict what will happen politically in the country, a spokesperson for the German migration service told Der Speigel, adding that until a serious assessment is made, any decision would be “on shaky ground.”
“The BAMF takes a very close look at the individual cases, including an assessment of the situation on the ground in the country of origin,” an Interior Ministry spokesman told reporters in Berlin.
There are around 900,000 Syrian nationals currently living in Germany, of which nearly 40% were employed in early 2024, according to data from the Interior Ministry and the Federal Employment Agency.
Observers say the crisis in Damascus could affect the Syrian diaspora in the EU, particularly in Germany, which is currently the world’s third largest and the EU’s top host country for Syrian refugees, according to the UNHCR, the UN’s refugee organization.
Neighboring Austria announced a similar decision on Monday, suspending all ongoing asylum requests from Syrian nationals, with the Interior Ministry saying it will prepare “orderly repatriations deportations.”
“Chancellor Karl Nehammer today instructed Interior Minister Gerhard Karner to suspend all current Syrian asylum applications and to review all cases in which asylum was granted,” the ministry said in a statement.
About 95,000 Syrian citizens were living in Austria at the beginning of 2024, while about 13,000 asylum requests were under consideration as of the end of November, according to official data.
“We will support all Syrians who have found refuge in Austria and want to return to their homeland,” Nehammer said on X on Sunday, adding that the security situation in Syria should be reassessed “in order to make deportations possible again in the future.”
Syrians are the biggest group of asylum applicants in Austria, with 12,871 applications to date this year, as of November.
