Number of asylum seekers in Saxony continues to fall sharply

The number of asylum seekers coming to Saxony has also fallen sharply in 2025. Their number halved for the second time in a row. In the previous year, 5,189 asylum seekers were registered, compared to 10,120 in 2024 and 23,120 in 2023. Interior Minister Armin Schuster (CDU) saw this as evidence of an "asylum turnaround". The statistics do not include the number of people seeking protection from the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. In 2025, this affected 5,942 women, children and men, compared to 1,912 in the previous year.

Voluntary departures have increased

Schuster saw the rising number of voluntary departures by rejected asylum seekers as positive. Last year, the number was 1,588, which was higher than ever before. In 2024, 950 people voluntarily complied with the request to leave the country. In addition, 917 migrants were deported last year (2024: 936). 64 percent of planned deportations were unsuccessful, it was reported. In most cases, those affected disappeared beforehand.

Focus should be on enforcing the obligation to leave the country

"As part of the asylum turnaround, we restored order at the borders in a first step and significantly reduced the influx once again last year. In the second step of the asylum turnaround, we are clearly focusing on enforcing the obligation to leave the country," explained Schuster. In order to noticeably increase the pressure on certain people obliged to leave the country, the instrument of preventive detention is needed.

Schuster also wants regular detention places for custody pending deportation

Schuster made several demands for better enforcement of the obligation to leave the country. It should once again be possible to use regular detention places for custody pending deportation. In order to ensure that sufficient capacity is available for the return of rejected asylum seekers, airlines must be obliged to cooperate. Sometimes deportations also fail due to decisions made by the airlines.