Germany has announced a significant reduction in funding from €1.1 billion to €500 million in 2025, for its integration courses aimed at helping migrants enter the job market.
This reduction comes despite calls for reforms and will result in less financial support for these courses, making it harder for many migrants to access essential language and orientation programmes.
Many non-EU nationals in Germany are either required or eligible to attend an integration course upon arrival. These courses typically begin with a German language class and an orientation course (Orientierungskurs) to equip migrants with essential language skills for everyday life.
This covers German history and culture, targeted at migrants with valid residence permits. This funding cut comes even as the German government is actively seeking to attract skilled migrants to address a record-high worker shortage.
Moreover, the special commissioner for refugee job market integration at the Bundesagentur für Arbeit has stressed the need for reform, stating that the current system must be improved to better prepare migrants for the German job market.
This year, Germany holds the position of having the second highest number of migrants among countries in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), second only to the United States which necessitates the need for these integration courses.
“German integration courses were developed 20 years ago when we weren’t thinking so much about workplace integration. We should better align these courses with the requirements of the job market”, Daniel Terzenbach said.
In a recent statement, Terzenbach emphasised the importance of educating migrants who are accustomed to different work cultures about the specifics of vocational training and the job market in Germany.
However, according to a report by the online magazine Migazin, Terzensbach’s proposal may be part of broader plans to redesign integration courses to accommodate the new, significantly reduced budget.
Experts warn that this could make it more difficult for newcomers to integrate into the German job market.
A 2024 study by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) commended Germany for its overall efforts to support migrant integration. However, the report highlighted shortcomings in the country’s educational integration policies, even before the recent budget cuts were announced.
The study found that two-thirds of migrants in Germany had acquired good skills informally through language classes or integration courses within their first five years in the country.
However, these skills significantly decline among migrants with little to no formal education.
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