Thousands of migrants are threatened with losing their residency in Germany
"Chancen-Aufenthaltsrecht" or "Right of Residence by Opportunity", which was approved by the "Traffic Light" government in Germany in 2022, has expired in many cases, according to the German Ministry of the Interior in response to an inquiry from the newspaper "Welt".
As of March 31, 2025, there were 83,273 individuals registered in the central foreigner registry who had obtained temporary residence rights under Article 104c of the Residence Act over the past two years. Among these, only 34,802 individuals still had valid residence, while 14,880 individuals had obtained permanent residence permits under Articles 25a or 25b of the same law, meaning they had a real opportunity for long-term stay in Germany.
In contrast, 5,227 people returned to the legal status of "tolerance" (Duldung), as they did not meet the required conditions, and are thus considered again obligated to leave the country. Meanwhile, 25,737 people received a "virtual certificate" (Fiktionsbescheinigung) or applied for permanent residency, which is a document issued by the competent authorities when the original residency permit expires and the new application has not yet been decided.
"Right of residence by opportunity" was launched at the end of 2022 with the aim of giving migrants who are required to leave and have lived in Germany for a long time a chance to stay. The main condition was to have resided in Germany for at least five years until October 31, 2022, along with other criteria such as proof of identity, proficiency in the German language, and the ability to secure a livelihood. The duration of this permit was set at 18 months, during which the conditions for permanent residence must be met.
The Ministry of Interior considered that the program has been successful, as a large number of migrants showed their willingness to regularize their status and engage in the labor market. It also saw that granting permanent residency to 14,880 individuals is evidence of the success of the pathway, and it anticipated similar results for those whose status is still under review.
However, the Director General of the Immigration Office in Berlin, Engelhard Mazanke, expressed his reservations. He stated that it is too early to issue a final judgment on this system, pointing out that its implementation requires a huge administrative effort, and that the specified period of 18 months was not sufficient. He explained that the presence of more than 25,000 people with a virtual certificate means that the authorities are either overwhelmed with numerous applications or that the migrants have not yet been able to meet the conditions for permanent residency, and in the case of Berlin, both reasons apply.