German authorities have arrested two employees at Hamburg’s Foreigners’ Office, who are accused of receiving money in order to issue residence permits.
According to I Am Expat, the two immigration office workers were arrested following suspicions that they accepted bribes in order to issue residence permits, regardless of whether the candidate met the criteria for obtaining one.
The two Hamburg Service employees are suspected of repeatedly issuing residence permits to unauthorised foreigners since September 2022, both jointly and commercially, as employees of various locations and in return for cash provisions of a not insignificant amount via intermediaries.
Hamburg law and order authorities announced the arrest on February 12, after the arrest warrant was issued on February 9.
In addition to the immigration office staff, the public prosecutor has revealed that it had opened a bribery investigation, including eight people who have been issued residence permits illegally.
Investigations first began in September 2022, after somebody reported the two Hamburg employees via a “corruption whistleblower system” on Hamburg’s Department for Internal Investigations portal.
According to Eurostat, the EU Office for Statistics, Germany is the second-leading country for issuing the most residence permits in Europe for 2022, representing 15.5 per cent of all permits issued or a total of 538,690, following Poland with 700,264 permits.
Notably, a significant portion of these permits, totalling 188,364, were granted for family reasons, constituting a substantial 35 per cent of all permits issued, while Germany issued the highest number of permits of such nature for the year.
Furthermore, the data highlights Germany’s appeal as an educational destination, with 70,072 permits issued for educational pursuits, making up 13 per cent of the total permits. Additionally, employment-related permits accounted for 81,795, representing 15.2 per cent of the overall permits issued, highlighting Germany’s attractiveness as a destination for career advancement and professional opportunities.
Germany issued the most residence permits for six out of the top ten nationalities in 2022, with Indians topping the list, with a total of 183,237 first residence permits issued across the EU, with a significant portion, 35,811 permits, being granted in Germany alone.
Following closely behind is Syria, accounting for 143,365 first residence permits in the EU, with a substantial majority, 91,703 permits, issued within Germany. The EU country issued around 64 per cent of all permits issued to Syrians for the year.
Additionally, Turkey emerges as a prominent recipient of the first residence permits in the EU, with 113,914 permits issued overall, of which 31,487 were granted in Germany. Notably, Russia secures a spot among the top nationalities, with 112,197 first residence permits issued throughout the EU, including 16,006 permits within Germany.
