German police recorded 13% fewer unauthorised border crossings in the first three weeks after the introduction of permanent controls than in the three weeks before the change, statistics released on Thursday show.
The German federal police reintroduced checks at Germany's borders with France, Luxembourg, Belgium, the Netherlands and Denmark on 16 September. Random checks have been in place at the borders with Poland, the Czech Republic and Switzerland since mid-October 2023, and were introduced at the German-Austrian border in Autumn 2015.
Law enforcement agencies came into contact with 3,464 people attempting to enter Germany illegally between 16 September and 6 October, according to federal police data analysed by the dpa press agency. Of these, 2,073 were deported.
Between 26 August and 15 September, 3,984 unauthorised entries were recorded, along with a total of 2,353 deportations.
Border controls generally run counter to the provisions on the free movement of people set out in the Schengen Agreement.
However, Germany's Interior Minister, Nancy Faeser, justified permanent checks at all land borders to the European Commission, saying they were necessary because of irregular immigration, cross-border crime and the need to provide protection against Islamic terrorists.
