Two brothers appeared before judges at a trial in the German city of Stuttgart on Monday (June 10). The two suspects, who were arrested last December, are accused of having falsified hundreds of language course certificates for migrants.

In Germany, migrants must prove they have acquired a certain level of language understanding in order to receive a certificate from the German authorities that indicates they are on the road to integration.

The two brothers are 32 and 37 years old, respectively, AFP reports.

According to a spokesperson at the prosecutor’s office, the men have been accused of at least 561 crimes. They are reported to be Kosovan nationals, according to Germany's regional state broadcaster SWR.

Hundreds of certificates printed and sold allegedly

Prosecutors allege that the brothers printed the certificates and distributed them to paying recipients by post, via a language school in the German city of Ellwangen or in person at a bar in the German city of Backnang.

The men are also suspected of having falsified other documents, such as driver's licenses, dpa and SWR report.

German authorities at the Federal Bureau for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) are thought to have processed at least 221 of the falsified certificates, some of which were required to obtain a residency permit or gain German citizenship.

The brothers also face allegations of migrant smuggling.

A third brother, who fled before prosecutors could catch up with him, is also thought to have been involved in the scheme. He is believed to be in Montenegro in a deportation prison, according to the German tabloid newspaper Bild.

He and other members of the alleged smuggling gang are being sought by prosecutors in separate processes.

Prosecutors say the brothers could have made up to 880,000 euros from the alleged falsifications and smuggling. SWR reported that each person was believed to have paid up to 2,300 euros for a false certificate.

The authorities have planned for the trial to continue until at least mid-August. On Monday, reported SWR, the two brothers maintained their silence in court. If found guilty, they could face sentences of up to ten years in prison.

Paying for the answers to language tests

This is not the first time that allegations have surfaced around the falsification of language tests for migrants. At the end of March, German state regional broadcaster WDR published a long investigation into allegations of the falsification of language tests for integration.

An Arabic-speaking reporter working for WDRforyou, a news and information platform offered by WDR for migrants and asylum seekers in Germany, went undercover as a migrant seeking to buy language test answers.

The reporter was put in touch with a Telegram channel and paid a deposit of 50 euros. He reported that it was "very uncomplicated. The administrator for the channel only seemed interested in the money."

After paying a further 200 euros, the reporter was sent a list of answers to the test, two days before he was due to take it.

Language tests needed to acquire integration certificates

This particular B1 level test was needed to obtain a so-called Integration Course Certificate (Zertifikat Integrationskurs).

In March, a BAMF spokesperson told an InfoMigrants Arabic reporter via email that authorities are aware of the allegations of falsified language course certificates.

The spokesperson said that if and when BAMF discovers that a certificate has been falsified, the police are notified.

BAMF said that it is up to the state prosecutor's office to decide whether those who may have bought false test certificates should face charges.

The spokesperson added that BAMF aims for high standards of security in their test process at all times, adding that these security standards are "constantly being updated and developed."

They said that false certificates should be quickly identified by those working in the foreigners offices and in charge of issuing citizenship documents.

With AFP and dpa