Germany is gradually bringing its admission program for Afghans to a close, confirming that about 280 people accepted under the Federal Reception Program for Afghanistan are currently waiting in Pakistan to travel onward to Germany, dpa reported yesterday (February 18).

About 50 of those in line for entry to Germany are former local staff and their relatives.

"Entry planning will be carried out promptly," a spokesperson for the Federal Ministry said, noting that the figures remain fluid and may change daily due to ongoing administrative procedures and court decisions. 

The announcement comes after Berlin informed more than 650 Afghans in December that they would no longer be admitted, despite having previously applied for humanitarian protection. Those affected were offered financial assistance to return to Afghanistan from Pakistan or to relocate to another country.

In recent months, Germany has continued to organize charter and scheduled flights for approved applicants.

Berlin also confirmed that previous support for Afghans who are staying in Islamabad and those who have been deported from Pakistan to Afghanistan will come to an end, although an exact time frame has not yet been outlined.

Since the latter part of last year, Germany has used charter and commercial flights to bring Afghans who had sought refuge from the Taliban in Pakistan to Germany.

Last week, 47 people from the federal admission program arrived in Berlin. 

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Policy shift 

Following the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, Germany pledged to relocate vulnerable Afghans, including former local employees working for German organizations, human rights defenders, and others at risk.

However, a policy change resulted in hundreds of Afghans stranded in Pakistan being told they would no longer be resettled and were instead offered cash support to withdraw their applications.

Many rejected the offer, saying it left them exposed to arrest or deportation. As of the end of 2025, only 167 people had accepted the offer of cash assistance in exchange for withdrawing from the German admissions program.

Afghans in Pakistan and Germany 

Thousands of Afghans took refuge in neighboring Pakistan when the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan. For years, Pakistan welcomed Afghans exiled from their country by war and political repression.

However, amid rising militant attacks at the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, Pakistan has pushed for the removal of Afghan nationals who have settled in the country or are waiting to be granted entry in other countries such as Germany.

As of January 2025, German government figures show that more than 35,500 Afghans have been resettled to Germany since the Taliban's return nearly five years ago. Among them are more than 20,600 former local staff and their relatives, as well as over 14,900 vulnerable Afghan nationals and their families admitted through humanitarian programs.

Meanwhile, data from the Federal Statistical Office of Germany estimated in2022 that roughly 425,000 people of Afghan origin were living in Germany, including those born in the country to Afghan parents and asylum seekers whose applications were still pending.

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Snapshot of returning Afghan nationals 

According to weekly data compiled by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, there were about 5,000 Afghan nationals who returned from Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan under various voluntary returns programs from February 8 to 14.

Fifty-eight percent of those who returned are male, while 53 percent are minors or below the age of 18. Nearly half of those who returned to Afghanistan came from Pakistan. The top provinces of return in Afghanistan included Nangarhar, Kabul, and Logar. 

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