Following a request for support received in March, the EUAA and Germany have signed an Operational Plan through which the Agency will provide the BAMF with targeted support in processing outgoing take-back requests and information requests under the Dublin Regulation.

The European Union Agency for Asylum (EUAA) and the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) have agreed to a targeted Operational Plan that will ensure EU support and solidarity with Germany and its national authorities in the implementation of the Dublin Regulation of the EU’s Common European Asylum System. Due to the surge in asylum applications, the workload of the BAMF has increased not only for the processing of asylum applications, but also in areas related to asylum intake including the Dublin procedure.

In 2023, Germany remained the top EU country in terms of Dublin decisions and implemented transfers, with a record high of over 74 000 outgoing requests (+8,6 % compared to 2022). Despite measures taken by Germany, the effective management of the Dublin workload is continuously impeded by staff shortages, which remain a key and ongoing challenge. In turn, this raises a need for increased personnel to handle the workload and ensure the effective implementation of the Dublin III Regulation.

The signature of the Operational Plan comes after the German authorities formally requested support in March 2024. Following the request, the EUAA, together with its German partners, swiftly carried out a Joint Rapid Needs Assessment (JRNA) to determine the level of support required. As a result, the EUAA Executive Director, Nina GREGORI and Dr. Michael GRIESBECK, Vice-President of the BAMF have signed an Operational Plan.

The plan, which is valid until 31 December 2025, provides for two areas of activity that will support the full implementation of the Dublin Regulation between Germany and its partner EU+ countries:

• Supporting the processing of outgoing take-back requests where there are clear grounds to believe that another Member State is responsible for the asylum application of an applicant for international protection;
• Supporting requests for information addressed to other EU+ Dublin units in cases when circumstantial evidence suggests that an applicant was present on the territory of another EU country before they arrived in Germany.

The EUAA will initially deploy a small Asylum Support Team of up to 15 personnel in different Dublin Centres across Germany.