Data and Facts

Photo: flags of the member states of the European Union in front of the Berlaymont building

Justice and Home Affairs Council in Brussels on 17–18 September 2007

Federal Minister of the Interior Wolfgang Schäuble indicated his satisfaction with the results of the first Justice and Home Affairs Council under the Portuguese EU Presidency. The interior ministers of the EU Member States agreed to find a successor to fill the position of EU Counter-Terrorism Coordinator. more...Justice and Home Affairs Council in Brussels on 17–18 September 2007

Bundesinnenminister Dr. Wolfgang Schäuble

The results of the work programme of the Federal Ministry of the Interior for the German EU Presidency in the first half of 2007

Achieving results for European home affairs policy
The German EU Presidency in the first half of 2007 more...The results of the work programme of the Federal Ministry of the Interior for the German EU Presidency in the first half of 2007

Information on the meetings of the High-Level Advisory Group on the Future of European Home Affairs Policy

The purpose of the Group is to discuss the future of European home affairs policy. The “Hague Programme on Strengthening Freedom, Security and Justice in the European Union” which dates from November 2004 and lays down political objectives and guidelines, runs until the end of 2009. more...Information on the meetings of the High-Level Advisory Group on the Future of European Home Affairs Policy

Meeting of G8 Justice and Interior Ministers in Munich, 23 – 25 May 2007

During the German G8 Presidency, the justice and interior ministers of the G8 countries were meeting in Munich from 23 to 25 May at the invitation of Federal Minister of Justice Brigitte Zypries and Federal Minister of the Interior Wolfgang Schäuble. European Commission Vice-President Franco Frattini and Interpol Secretary-General Ronald K. Nobel also were guests at the meeting, also the justice and interior ministers of Canada, France, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States. more...Meeting of G8 Justice and Interior Ministers in Munich, 23 – 25 May 2007

Meeting of G8 Justice and Interior Ministers in Munich, 23 – 25 May 2007

Photos from the G8 Ministerial Meeting in Munich

Foto: Grenzpolizisten bei der Kontrolle eines PKW

Schengen

Schengen is a model successfully applied by the European Union to bring about the envisaged common area of freedom, security and justice. The Schengen Agreement (of 14 June 1985) and the Convention Implementing the Schengen Agreement (of 19 June 1990, CAS) aim to put freedom of movement into practice by removing the border between Schengen states (internal borders). more...Schengen

Foto: Personen beim illegalen Grenzübertritt

Trafficking in Human Beings and Illegal Immigration/Illegal Immigrant Smuggling

The crime that is related to the trafficking in human beings is a challenge to society as a whole. It is extremely cynical and reflects a blatant disregard for the basic ethical values of our society. Also, illegal migration regularly involves a significant import of crime. For these reasons, combating the trafficking in human beings is a priority task which requires a contribution by all social players. The Federal Government combats the trafficking in human beings through measures at the national level more...Trafficking in Human Beings and Illegal Immigration/Illegal Immigrant Smuggling

Photomontage: the German flag an the United Nations emblem

International and multilateral activities of the Federal Ministry of the Interior

As the third largest contributor to the UN Germany has an important share in financing the world organization’s work. Moreover, Germany is very active in the political and diplomatic sphere and provides conceptual input in the fields of security and peace-keeping. These contributions characterize Germany’s responsible action, which makes it a much-respected partner within the UN.
Furthermore, as the biggest contributor to the EU budget, Germany plays a major role in the European Security and Defence Policy. more...International and multilateral activities of the Federal Ministry of the Interior

International administrative assistance

The European Union (EU) has launched comprehensive assistance programmes to support those countries that joined the EU in 2004 or will join it in the coming years to help them build up their administrations and infrastructures. more...International administrative assistance

EU and UN lists of terrorists and terrorist organizations

Resolutions 1267, 1390 and others adopted by the Security Council acting under Chapter VII of the UN Charter oblige Member States to freeze all assets of individuals and entities which are listed by the Security Council Sanctions Committee (ATSC) because of their ties to Al-Qaeda and/or the Taliban (UN SC resolution 1617 names the relevant criteria). Further, funds and economic resources may not be made available to individuals listed by the ATSC. The ATSC lists were implemented by EU regulations and are thus directly applicable in all EU Member States. more...EU and UN lists of terrorists and terrorist organizations

EU Plan of Action on Combating Terrorism

The European Union has responded rapidly and comprehensively to the attacks of 11 September 2001. Immediately after the attacks of 11 September 2001, a broad-based Plan of Action on Combating Terrorism was adopted and subsequently updated and supplemented after the Madrid bomb attacks of 11 March 2004. The Plan of Action comprises more than 160 individual measures that are related inter alia to law enforcement, visa policy, border management, foreign policy, civil protection and public health and aviation/maritime security. more...EU Plan of Action on Combating Terrorism

Combating the financing of terrorism

According to security authorities’ intelligence, terrorist attacks are financed from various sources and in various ways. Tracking these sources and disrupting the financial transactions is an important aspect in combating terrorism. To cope with this task, cooperation between security authorities and financial institutions has been significantly improved at national and international level. more...Combating the financing of terrorism

Drug-related crime

The drugs situation in Germany – Key aspects
Measures to fight drug-related crime
The international and national fight against drugs

more...Drug-related crime

EU institutions for police cooperation

The European Police Office Europol is one of the central pillars of fighting crime in Europe and, at Germany’s initiative, was set up as the central office for sharing police intelligence and analysing crime without having any executive powers. Europol became operational on 1 July 1999. The most important legal basis for its activities is the Europol Convention, which entered into force on 1 October 1998. more...EU institutions for police cooperation

Institution of border police cooperation in the EU

The “European Agency for the Management of Operational Co-operation at the External Borders of the Member States of the European Union”, briefly referred to as “FRONTEX“, was established by a Council Decision (Council Regulation (EC) 2007/2004 of 26 October 2004, OJ L 349 of 25 November 2004) on 1 May 2005. Its operation was started on 3 October 2005. The agency’s title is derived from the French term for external borders (frontières extérieures). more...Institution of border police cooperation in the EU

The Federal Government’s foreigners and asylum policy

The Federal Government’s foreigners and asylum policy is based on the Immigration Act, which entered into force on 1 January 2005. Since then, the Federal Ministry of the Interior has critically reviewed the act, assessing the degree to which it meets actual needs and achieves the desired objectives. The conclusion was that the Immigration Act has generally proven to be effective and that the desired objectives have been achieved.Some aspects, however, still need to be improved. more...The Federal Government’s foreigners and asylum policy

Repatriation of refugees

For over 25 years now, the Federal Government and the Länder promote the „Reintegration and Emigration Programme for Asylum-Seekers in Germany (REAG)“ and the „Government Assisted Repatriation Programme (GARP)“ which are organised by the IOM and aim to give refugees travel assistance and transport allowance as an incentive to go back to their country or go to another country on a voluntary basis. Persons from countries of origin regarded as particularly important in migration policy terms can be granted additional start-up assistance under the GARP programme. more...Repatriation of refugees

Foto: Junge ausländische Frau mit Kopfhörer

Integration of foreigners living in Germany

German language skills are the key to professional and social integration. The better an individual is able to master the language of the country in which he is going to live permanently, the better his chance of becoming, within a reasonable period of time, a part of that country’s society. Therefore it is in the interests both of the migrants but also of the receiving country to ensure that immigrants acquire a writing and speaking knowledge of German on the basis of uniform quality standards and controlled target levels of attainment. more...Integration of foreigners living in Germany

Fotomontage: Ausweise mit deutscher Flagge

A Modern Nationality Law

The Act to Amend the Nationality Law (Reform des Staatsangehörigkeitsrechts) of 15 July 1999 helped to dissolve the reform jam in this important field of policy. The reform act served to introduce a number of important innovations (thus the place of birth was introduced as an additional criterion along with the principle of ius sanguinis, and the residence periods required for naturalisation were shortened) more...A Modern Nationality Law

Mädchen der russlanddeutschen Gemeinde in Tomsk

National minorities

The way national minorities are treated is a yardstick for freedom and democracy in a society. At the same time, living together peacefully with national minorities, protecting and promoting them is, for many European states, a sine qua non for domestic stability and good intergovernmental relations. Last but not least, this is also important for ethnic German minorities in central and eastern European countries and in the successor states of the former Soviet Union.
For indigenous ethnic groups in Germany this translates into far-reaching protection of their real life and legal situation. It is the aim of the Federal Government to protect national minorities in the Federal Republic of Germany and to create prospects for members of ethnic German minorities in their countries of origin. more...National minorities

Objectives of International Sport Policy

Being one of the world’s leading sports nations, Germany also makes an important contribution towards the development of sport at the international level, both within Europe and beyond. The Federal Ministry of the Interior fulfils important functions in this field in the context of intergovernmental co-operation within the council of Europe, the European Union and UNESCO and in the framework of bilateral co-operation with foreign states at the level of the sport ministries. more...Objectives of International Sport Policy

Taking action against doping

Taking action against doping in sport is one of the core elements of the Federal Government’s sport policy. It is an indispensable requirement for promoting top-level sport. more...Taking action against doping

Photo: Portrait of Dr. Wolfgang Schäuble

Border Management in Afghanistan – A Regional Approach

Speech by Federal Minister of the Interior Dr. Wolfgang Schäuble for the opening of the DOHA II Conference Border Management in Afghanistan: A Regional Approach Doha, 28 February 2006 more...Border Management in Afghanistan – A Regional Approach

Offering protection - fighting crime with determination

Europe must cooperate more closely an domestic and justice policy. Initial steps have already been taken in the direction of harmonizing asylum and refugee laws. more...Offering protection - fighting crime with determination

Cooperation in the European Union on combating terrorism

The EU Member States have worked closely together for many years to fight terrorism. The European Union responded quickly and on a broad scale to the new dimension of terrorist threat heralded by the attacks of 11 September 2001 in the US. more...Cooperation in the European Union on combating terrorism

Enlargement of the European Union

On 1 May 2004, ten new countries joined the European Union: the Republic of Cyprus, the Czech Republic, the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Hungary, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of Poland, the Republic of Slovenia and the Slovak Republic. Following decades of division, the face of Europe is changing. more...Enlargement of the European Union

International cooperation

In the framework of EU funding programmes the Federal Ministry of the Interior is committed to numerous projects aimed at further developing the administrative structures in candidate countries to the European Community and in East European and South-Eastern European countries. more...International cooperation

Federal Ministry of the Interior

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BMI Data and Facts

Data and Facts

Justice and Home Affairs Council in Brussels on 17–18 September 2007

The results of the work programme of the Federal Ministry of the Interior for the German EU Presidency in the first half of 2007

Information on the meetings of the High-Level Advisory Group on the Future of European Home Affairs Policy

Meeting of G8 Justice and Interior Ministers in Munich, 23 – 25 May 2007

Schengen

Trafficking in Human Beings and Illegal Immigration/Illegal Immigrant Smuggling

International and multilateral activities of the Federal Ministry of the Interior

International administrative assistance

EU and UN lists of terrorists and terrorist organizations

EU Plan of Action on Combating Terrorism

Combating the financing of terrorism

Drug-related crime

EU institutions for police cooperation

Institution of border police cooperation in the EU

The Federal Government’s foreigners and asylum policy

Repatriation of refugees

Integration of foreigners living in Germany

A Modern Nationality Law

National minorities

Objectives of International Sport Policy

Taking action against doping

Border Management in Afghanistan – A Regional Approach

Offering protection - fighting crime with determination

Cooperation in the European Union on combating terrorism

Enlargement of the European Union

International cooperation