German court blocks mass cancellation of Afghan resettlement cases

BERLIN (MNTV) — Germany’s Federal Constitutional Court has ruled that the government cannot collectively cancel previously issued resettlement commitments to Afghan nationals and must assess each affected case individually.

The ruling followed a complaint by an Afghan woman and her two sons, who were selected for relocation to Germany under a humanitarian admission program established after the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021.

The court found that the Interior Ministry’s decision in December 2025 to terminate the program and revoke about 640 outstanding admission commitments without examining the individual circumstances of those affected violated Germany’s constitutional prohibition against arbitrary state action.

The judges said the government retains broad authority over immigration policy but must exercise those powers within the limits of Germany’s Basic Law.

Once German authorities formally notify an individual that they have been accepted for admission, any decision to withdraw that commitment must be based on an assessment of the person’s individual circumstances rather than a blanket policy affecting an entire group, the court said.

The ruling sends the case back to Berlin’s Higher Administrative Court for reconsideration. The Interior Ministry said it is awaiting that court’s decision.

The Afghan family is currently staying in Pakistan, where Germany has been covering the costs of their accommodation and support.

The Constitutional Court ruled that the German government must continue providing that assistance until visas are issued or the Interior Ministry reaches a new decision that complies with constitutional requirements.

The decision comes as Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government pursues tighter immigration policies following its election last year. The government has introduced stricter migration controls amid growing political debate over asylum and humanitarian admission programs.

The admission programs have remained politically contentious, with security officials expressing concerns that some applicants’ identities could not be conclusively verified or that false information may have been provided. Human rights organizations, meanwhile, have accused the government of undermining protections for vulnerable Afghans.

The court emphasized that its ruling does not prevent Germany from changing its migration policies or ending humanitarian admission programs for future applicants. However, it limits the government’s ability to revoke commitments that have already been formally made to individuals through a single collective decision.

Instead, authorities must examine each case individually and ensure that any withdrawal of a previous admission commitment complies with constitutional requirements.

Germany’s Society for Civil Rights, which helped develop the constitutional complaint on which the case was based, welcomed the ruling.

“This is good news for fundamental rights, but it is not enough,” lawyer Mareile Dedekind said in a statement.

“Germany must finally bring those seeking protection to safety from torture and death.”

The organization said about 30 similar cases remain pending before the Constitutional Court.

The ruling establishes a legal distinction between changing future migration policy and withdrawing commitments already made to individuals, reaffirming that while the government has broad discretion over immigration policy, it cannot exercise that authority in a manner that disregards the individual circumstances of those who have already received formal assurances of admission.