Germany will turn away migrants without papers at the border under pledge by new chancellor Friedrich Merz as he scraps Angela Merkel’s disastrous open doors policy on first day in office

Newly elected German chancellor Friedrich Merz has scrapped Angela Merkel’s open border policy, and has issued orders to turn undocumented migrants away from the nation. 

Alexander Dobrindt, the new interior minister, rescinded Merkel’s 2015 order, which had previously allowed hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers to enter Germany, many of whom were fleeing civil war in Syria. 

The new rules would now see everyone without proper documentation, apart from children and pregnant women, turned away if they try to get into Germany from a neighbouring country. 

Merz agreed to also allow Syrians to be deported back to their home country, and has suspended family reunions.  

Dobrint also ordered a massive increase in border force personnel, with local media reporting that a further 3,000 cops are being brought in for a total of 14,000 border guards. 

Merz, who made the order on his first day in office, pledged during the election to crack down on migration. 

This pledge came following a spate of knife and car attacks carried out by non-Germans that galvanised support for the hard-right AfD party, which is now neck-and-neck with the CDU/SDU alliance in the polls. 

Dobrint said during a press conference: ‘This issue is about clarity, resoluteness and control. 

Newly elected German chancellor Friedrich Merz (pictured) has scrapped Angela Merkel’s open border policy

An officer of the German Federal Police (Bundespolizei) escorts a group of migrants near Forst, eastern Germany on October 11, 2023

Suspected illegal migrants sit on the ground after they were detained by German police during their patrol along the German-Polish border to prevent illegal migration, in Forst, Germany, September 20, 2023

Former German Chancellor Angela Merkel attends the election of German Chancellor at the Bundestag in Berlin, Germany, 6 May 2025

‘It’s clear that we want to take stronger steps against illegal immigration and the result must be that we deploy a bigger police presence at the borders for that. The numbers remain significantly too high.’ 

Merz defended the policy on Wednesday, saying: ‘The European Union must send a signal to those who are setting off for Europe without valid entry permits.’

‘And above all, we need to send a signal to the smuggling organizations that these routes will become much more difficult in the future — and that at some point, they will be closed altogether. That is the right and strong common signal.’

But that same day, Switzerland, which shares a border with Germany, criticised Merz’s move. 

It wrote in a statement on X: ‘From Switzerland’s perspective, the systematic pushbacks at the border constitute a violation of current law. Switzerland regrets that Germany has taken these measures without consultation.’ 

Merz succeeds former chancellor Olaf Scholz, whose government collapsed six months ago. He was elected by MPs on Tuesday and officially nominated as chancellor by the country’s president the same day.

Scholz, too, had been under pressure to curb migration as shelters across the country had been filling up for years.

His government tried to speed up asylum procedures and also negotiated agreements for countries to take unsuccessful asylum seekers back in exchange for more opportunities for legal immigration.

Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz is congratulated as he is elected chancellor by parliament in second round of voting in the German lower house of parliament Bundestag 

Officers of the German Federal Police (Bundespolizei) escort a group of migrants near Forst, eastern Germany on October 11, 2023

A German police officer at a checkpoint near the border with France, in Lauterbourg, Germany, 07 May 2025

A German federal police Bundespolizei officers stops a vehicle during a patrol along the German-Polish border to prevent illegal migration near Forst, Germany, October 12, 2023

In February, just days before the election, Mr Scholz’s government had also extended by six months the border checks it imposed on all its frontiers last autumn as it attempted to cut the number of migrants arriving in the country.

The government said at the time that the increase of border controls led to a drop in migrants trying to cross Germany’s borders.

The European Union’s visa-free travel area known as Schengen allows citizens of most member states to travel easily across borders for work and pleasure. Switzerland also belongs to Schengen although it is not an EU member.

According to the EU, member states are allowed to temporarily reintroduce border controls in cases of a serious threat, such as internal security. But it also says border controls should be applied as a last resort in exceptional situations, and must be limited in time.

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