Saxony has state exit center - goal of more returns

In future, Saxony will rely on a state departure center to deal with asylum seekers who have no prospects of staying. It was set up on June 1, said Interior Minister Armin Schuster (CDU) after the cabinet meeting in Dresden. According to the coalition agreement, the aim is to relieve the burden on local authorities first.

In future, asylum seekers without tolerated status are to be accommodated in the center if they are still in the initial reception and where repatriation is likely or can be made possible in the foreseeable future. "If possible, we no longer want to distribute these people to the municipalities."

According to Schuster, the central management is a test, combined with the hope that the number of unsuccessful returns can be significantly reduced and the number of voluntary departures increased. This is because one of the obstacles is that people cannot be found. "We urgently want to change that." In the state departure center, there are reporting obligations for people who are there, close-meshed presence and absence checks, they are provided for, the principle of benefits in kind is suspended and very intensive advice is given on voluntary departure.

At the end of April, there were over 2,000 people in Saxony who were required to leave the country

According to the Saxony State Directorate, at the end of April there were 2,109 people in Saxony who were required to leave the country without a tolerated stay. There are currently 26 people in the former, rededicated initial reception facility. Its capacity will be increased to up to 120 places over the next few months. By assigning people there, it will finally become clear to them "that they have to leave" and they may then be a little more open, said Schuster.

Only men traveling alone in the state departure centre

The center will only accommodate men traveling alone who are required to leave the country and for whom there is no immediate obstacle to deportation. According to the Ministry of the Interior, it is expected to cost around 150,000 to 200,000 euros to set up the center.

The number of deportations is on a par with previous years, with a total of 936 in 2024. According to Schuster, there are signs of an increase for 2025 with 348 by the end of April. The number of verified voluntary departures has almost tripled since 2020 to 950 in the previous year - by the end of April 2025, there were already 631 verified voluntary departures.

Return counseling is increasingly aimed at people who cannot be deported or can only be deported under very difficult conditions for legal reasons or due to the geopolitical situation, but in whom society has an increased interest - such as serious offenders and dangerous persons with deportation bans for their countries of origin.