Germany's Federal Interior Ministry has already informed the relevant welfare associations, known as Freie Wohlfahrtspflege, of the planned funding freeze, according to reports by the Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND) and investigative network Correctiv published on Saturday.
The counselling services in question were introduced in 2023 under the former Ampel coalition. Under Section 12a of the Asylum Act, the federal government funds "authority-independent, outcome-open, free-of-charge, individual and voluntary asylum procedure counselling." The CDU/CSU and SPD had agreed in their coalition agreement to evaluate this offering with an open outcome.
According to the reports, the Federal Interior Ministry intends to let the funding expire in 2027. A ministry spokesperson declined to confirm this to AFP on Saturday. "Decisions on the allocation of funds take place within the framework of budget negotiations," the spokesperson said. "The budget consultations for the year 2027 have yet to take place."
Sources within the SPD told Correctiv that the planned complete elimination of the funding had not been agreed upon within the coalition. "We continue to advocate for independent asylum procedure counselling," said SPD Bundestag member Hakan Demir. "Especially for vulnerable groups, we know how important it is to not only speak with government representatives about an upcoming asylum procedure."
Green Party budget politician Leon Eckert confirmed the funding freeze to RND. He said the Interior Ministry was citing "alleged budget constraints in the departmental budget as well as an evaluation result that it is simultaneously keeping under wraps" to justify its decision. Eckert criticised Interior Minister Dobrindt, who also wants to cut funding for integration courses, saying the move continues "his migration policy and humanitarian blind flight."
Michael Groß, president of the Arbeiterwohlfahrt welfare organisation, called the plans "a grave political mistake." "After all the attacks on the right to asylum, civil society is now also being actively pushed back from supporting refugees," he told RND newspapers.
Pro Asyl also expressed shock at the development. "Independent asylum procedure counselling is not a luxury, but a central rule-of-law safeguard in the asylum process," said executive director Karl Kopp to RND. He argued that in a complex procedure, those seeking protection need guidance independent of the authorities. If this counselling were to disappear, asylum seekers would lose "one of the few structures that create trust and enable effective access to justice," Kopp added.
The Lesbian and Gay Association of Germany (LSVD) also issued sharp criticism. "The end of authority-independent asylum procedure counselling can have fatal consequences especially for vulnerable groups such as LGBTIQ* individuals," said board member Patrick Dörr to Correctiv.
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