German news. Refugees in Germany. Germany’s federal government approved a draft law dubbed ‘opportunity for right to remain’ (Chancen-Bleiberecht) which targets people who have been living in Germany for years. Many refugees in Germany had been granted a ‘tolerated stay permit’ called a duldung in German.
The bill will be submitted to the federal parliament where it still has to undergo discussions and amendments before passing into law. The bill states that people who have been living in Germany with a duldung for five years as of 1st January 2022 will be issued a on-year residence permit on probation in order to fulfil the other requirements for a right to permanent stay in the country.
While on the 1-year probation, those supposed to be granted the permit will have to fulfil the requirements for a permanent residency right, including securing their livelihood and proving sufficient German language skills. Those who fail to meet the requirements will revert to tolerated status.
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What would exclude you from the scheme?
Persons with criminal records and their families are excluded from the Chancen-Bleiberecht scheme. On the other hand, persons who have lived in Germany for less than five years are to be granted the permit if a sloe relative receives it.
This is solely to prevent families from being separated.
The African Courier wrote that according to the Interior Ministry, about 136,600 of the 242,000 tolerated persons in Germany could benefit from the Chancen-Bleiberecht.
Who is Duldung granted to?
Duldung is normally granted to people who have been refused asylum and are obliged to leave the country, but are also allowed to stay in Germany temporarily because they cannot provide proof of identity or have an illness tat cannot be treated in their country of origin.
People being tolerated in their host country do not have the surety of a secure stay and the toleration is limited in time and its duration is determined by the competent foreigners’ authorities.
After the expiry of a toleration period, persons who are obliged to leave the country can be granted an extension of toleration – leading to what is often referred to as Kettenduldung “chain toleration”.