Germany says it plans to tighten border checks and turn back more asylum seekers. But can it legally do that, and what happens if Austria refuses to take them back?
Germany’s designated Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt recently announced plans to increase border checks and rejections of asylum seekers, raising alarms on both sides.
The proposal, set to begin on Wednesday, has already been met with pushback from Austrian officials and legal experts who warn that such rejections may violate EU law. But how does this all work in practice, and what could it mean for people seeking asylum, or for relations between the two countries?
What exactly is Germany proposing?
Dobrindt, a member of the conservative Christian Social Union (CSU), said Germany would step up “refoulement”—the turning back of migrants—at the border with Austria, especially at key crossings like the Deutsches Eck. While Germany already conducts passport checks and spot inspections on trains arriving from Austria, this new policy is expected to involve more aggressive enforcement and a greater number of returns.
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However, officials have not yet detailed exactly how these tighter controls will be implemented or how they would comply with European regulations.
How will this affect travellers?
If you’re crossing the Austrian-German border and are not an EU citizen, it’s smart to carry proper identification like a passport and a visa if you have one. If you run into border controls, expect delays, and traffic.
And if you’re seeking asylum, know that EU law gives you the right to apply, but actual enforcement may vary depending on political pressures.
Is this even allowed under EU law?
Not in the way Germany seems to suggest, according to Walter Obwexer, a European law expert at the University of Innsbruck, Der Standard reported.
Under EU law, people who apply for asylum at the border must be allowed to enter the country and have their request assessed. “Turning back third-country nationals at the EU’s internal borders who apply for asylum at the border is unlawful and contradicts current EU law,” Obwexer told the Austrian daily.
This means that unless someone is not applying for asylum or is trying to enter without a visa and does not qualify for protection, Germany is not legally entitled to send them straight back to Austria.
What is Austria’s response?
Austria’s Ministry of the Interior has pushed back firmly against the idea. In a statement to Der Standard, the ministry said it expects Germany to “adhere to the European legal order” and warned that Austria would not accept deviations from that standard.
In other words, Austria could simply refuse to take people back if Germany turns them away unlawfully.
That could create a legal and logistical stalemate at the border, especially if there’s no agreement on who is responsible for the person in question.
If Germany were to go ahead with rejections that violate EU law, Austria has a few options. According to Obwexer, one of them would be to lodge a complaint with the European Commission and potentially trigger infringement proceedings against Germany.
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But legal action takes time, and in the short term, the real question is what happens to asylum seekers who are caught in the middle. “There is no ‘no man’s land,’” said Lukas Gahleitner-Gertz, a migration expert with Asylkoordination Österreich. He told Der Standard that Germany and Austria would need to find a political solution in such cases.
Are asylum seekers already being turned back?
Yes, although not always lawfully, critics say.
“There are always stories from people that they are turned back by Germany despite having applied for protection,” Gahleitner-Gertz explained. These anecdotal reports suggest that rejections already happen, often without full transparency or oversight.
The latest announcements may therefore be more political than practical, he added. “The politicians in both countries simply want to show that they are doing something about migration.”
Despite the heated rhetoric, migration numbers are relatively low right now. According to Austria’s Interior Ministry, only 4,600 asylum applications were registered by the end of March this year.
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