A recent poll commissioned by public broadcaster WDR reveals that two‑thirds of Germans support tighter restrictions on migrants’ access to social benefits. The survey, carried out by the Infratest‑dimap research institute in early April, interviewed 2,084 respondents aged 16 and older across the country. About 66 % said migrants should receive full benefits only after working in Germany for an extended period.
Germany hosts the largest migrant population in the European Union, with foreign‑born residents accounting for roughly 15 % of the total population. According to official statistics, around 70 % of migrants are employed. Nevertheless, foreign nationals make up 47 % of recipients of “Burgergeld,” the nation’s principal welfare programme for people who cannot support themselves through work. Burgergeld provides a monthly allowance of approximately €563, plus housing and utility subsidies, although eligibility criteria differ according to the recipient’s origin and the specific benefit category.
Ukrainians illustrate the policy debate. They are the second‑largest migrant group after Turkish‑origin residents, numbering about 1.41 million as of late 2025. After the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in 2022, Berlin granted Ukrainians immediate access to Burgergeld, a faster and more generous route than that offered to most other refugee groups. The employment rate among working‑age Ukrainians stands at roughly 34 %, but it has risen steadily since 2022.
Syrians, the third‑largest non‑EU migrant cohort with a population of around 936,000, face a different pathway. They initially receive asylum‑seeker benefits and only transition to full welfare once their asylum applications are approved. Overall employment among Syrians ranges from 42 % to 47 %, climbing to 60 % for those who arrived in 2015‑2016.
The issue has attracted political attention. In November, Chancellor Friedrich Merz described the low employment figures among migrants as “unacceptably low” and announced a tightening of the welfare system. His government reduced benefits for new arrivals to about €441 per month, aligning them with the level paid to asylum seekers, and introduced stricter job‑search requirements. In May, the Bundestag approved a broader reform that will replace Burgergeld with a new “basic income support” scheme. While the payment levels will remain broadly unchanged, the new system will incorporate tougher sanctions and is scheduled to take effect in July.
The poll’s results suggest a significant shift in public opinion toward conditioning welfare on longer periods of employment. As the German government moves forward with welfare reforms, the balance between integration incentives and fiscal pressures will likely remain a central topic in future policy discussions.
