Integration Act (Germany)

Basic data
Title:	Integration Act
Type:	Federal law
Scope:	Federal Republic of Germany
Legal matter:	Right of asylum , right of residence
Issued on:	July 31, 2016 ( BGBl. 2016 I p. 1939 )
Entry into force on:	predominantly August 6, 2016 partly January 1, 2017 (Art. 8 G of July 31, 2016)
Last change by:	Art. 2 G of July 4, 2019 ( Federal Law Gazette I p. 914, 915 )
Effective date of the last change:	July 12, 2019 (Art. 3 G of July 4, 2019)
GESTA :	B046
Weblink:	Legal text
Please note the note on the applicable legal version.

The Integration Act is a German article law . It was enacted on July 31, 2016 and is a legislative reaction to the refugee crisis in Germany from 2015 . The main parts of the law came into force on August 6, 2016. The guiding principle of this law is the principle of promoting and demanding .

Legislative development

The Federal Cabinet decided on 25 May 2016 a cabinet meeting at Schloss Meseberg the draft of an integration law. The federal government's draft law was discussed by the Bundestag on June 3, 2016 in the first reading and on July 7, 2016 in the second and third readings and approved with the votes of the coalition groups. The opposition factions Die Linke and Bündnis 90 / Die Grünen voted against. The opposition parties had submitted their own applications to integrate refugees into the labor market, but they were all rejected with the votes of the coalition factions. The main parts of the law came into force on August 6, 2016.

At the same time as the Integration Act came into force, a statutory ordinance - the Ordinance on the Integration Act - was issued, which contains details on the integration courses and the waiver of the priority test for starting work.

Regulations

The law changes the following laws:

1. Second Book of the Social Code ,
2. Third Book of the Social Security Code ,
3. Book Twelfth Social Code ,
4. Asylum Seekers Benefits Act ,
5. Residence Act ,
6. Asylum Act and
7. AZR law .

The changes implement the following key objectives:

• A residence requirement can be issued for recognized refugees , as was once applied to ethnic German repatriates .
• A permanent settlement permit is only issued for recognized refugees if integration services have been provided.
• In the case of refugees with good prospects to stay, the Federal Employment Agency waives the priority test for three years in certain regions . This also enables temporary agency work .

Further changes:

• Changed rules for the expiry of a declaration of commitment apply .
• The orientation courses have been increased from 60 to 100 lesson hours and their content has been more geared towards conveying values.
• A toleration applies for the entire duration of an apprenticeship, as well as for two more years in the event of subsequent employment that is adequate to the apprenticeship (“ 3 + 2 rule ”). Access to funding for vocational training has been improved for certain target groups. Companies and companies are obliged to report dropouts to the immigration authorities; If the apprenticeship is discontinued, the tolerance for the search for a new training position is extended by six months. A tolerance of six months is also given for the job search.

State laws

The federal states have the right to enact their own integration laws (cf. Art. 70 ff GG). In case of doubt, however, the federal law always applies (cf. Art. 31 GG).

The following four federal states have passed their own integration laws:

• Bavaria (BayIntG)
• Baden-Württemberg (PartIntG)
• Berlin (PartIntG)
• North Rhine-Westphalia (Participation and Integration Act)

See also

• Refugee crisis in Germany from 2015 # Integration Act (preparation of the Integration Act)
• Integration of immigrants

literature

• v. Harbou: The Integration Act, NVwZ 2016, 1193
• Thym: Integration by law? Limits and contents of the federal “Integration Act”, ZAR 2016, 241

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Federal Ministry of the Interior August 5, 2016: Integration Act comes into force tomorrow
2. ↑ Integration Act relies on promoting and demanding. The Federal Government, July 8, 2016, accessed on January 7, 2018 . 
3. ↑ Federal Ministry of the Interior May 25, 2016: Federal cabinet adopts a draft integration law
4. ↑ Federal Government May 25, 2016: Integration is both an offer and an obligation
5. ↑ Federal Government May 25, 2016: Meseberg Declaration on Integration
6. ↑ Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs May 25, 2016: The new integration law promotes and demands
7. ↑ German Bundestag DrS 18/8615, May 31, 2016: bill of the CDU / CSU and SPD: Draft Integration Act
8. ↑ German Bundestag DrS 18/8829, June 20, 2016: Bill of the parliamentary groups of the CDU / CSU and SPD: Draft of an integration law
9. ↑ German Bundestag DrS 18/8883 (on printed matter 18/8829) Information by the federal government: Draft of an integration law - printed matter 18/8829 - counter-statement by the federal government on the opinion of the Bundesrat
10. ↑ German Bundestag, plenary minutes 18/174: Additional agenda item 4: First discussion of the draft integration law introduced by the parliamentary groups of the CDU / CSU and SPD - DrS 18/8615, p. 17185 A - 17199
11. ↑ German Bundestag plenary proceedings 18/183: agenda item 12: Second and third reading of the introduced by the parliamentary groups of the CDU / CSU and SPD draft one Integration Act - DRS 18/8615, p 18087 C - 18097
12. ↑ German Bundestag June 8, 2016: Bundestag passes an integration law
13. ↑ German Bundestag DrS 18/664: Motion by MP Sabine Zimmermann (Zwickau) ... and the DIE LINKE parliamentary group: Support refugees on their way to work, promote integration and fight wage dumping
14. ↑ German Bundestag DrS 18/7653: Motion by MP Brigitte Pothmer ... and the Alliance 90 / THE GREENS parliamentary group: Labor market policy for refugees - practical support from the start
15. ↑ German Bundestag DrS 18/7651: Motion by MPs Luise Amtsberg ... and the Alliance 90 / THE GREENS parliamentary group: Integration is democracy in action and strengthens social cohesion
16. ↑ German Bundestag DrS 18/6198: ensure access to education and training for young refugees: Application of Deputies Beate Walter Rosenheim ... and the Alliance 90 / The Greens
17. ↑ German Bundestag DrS 18/6345: Application of Deputies Kai Gehring ... and the Alliance 90 / The Greens: Diversity strengthens science - provide study opportunities for refugees
18. ↑ German Bundestag DrS 18/6192: Motion by MP Nicole Gohlke ... and the DIE LINKE parliamentary group: Equal access to education for refugees too
19. ↑ German Bundestag DrS 18/7049: Application of Deputies Özcan Mutlu ... and the Alliance 90 / The Greens: More educational opportunities for immigrant society - This origin does not determine the future
20. ↑ Federal Government August 8, 2016: Act entered into force. Integration Act relies on promoting and demanding
21. ^ Fourth ordinance amending the Employment Ordinance of 6 August 2016
22. ↑ Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs August 5, 2016: Easier access to the labor market for refugees
23. ↑ ^{a b c} Integration Act relies on promoting and demanding. Federal Government, August 8, 2016, accessed November 5, 2017 . 
24. ↑ ^{a b} The new integration law. (No longer available online.) Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, July 7, 2016, archived from the original on September 15, 2016 ; accessed on September 10, 2016 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
25. ↑ The new integration law. In: Material for the press. Federal Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, accessed on September 10, 2016 .  P. 4.
26. ↑ GG - Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany. Retrieved December 3, 2019 . 
27. ↑ Art 31 GG - single norm. Retrieved December 3, 2019 . 
28. ↑ Research area at the Expert Council of German Foundations for Integration and Migration (SVR research area): paper tigers or milestones? The integration laws of the federal states in comparison . Berlin 2017, p. 32 ( uni-erlangen.de [PDF]).
29. ↑ BayIntG: Bavarian Integration Act (BayIntG) of December 13, 2016 (GVBl. P. 335) BayRS 26-6-I (Art. 1-18) - Citizens' Service. Retrieved December 3, 2019 . 
30. ↑ The new law follows the principle of “demand and support”. Retrieved December 3, 2019 . 
31. ↑ VIS BE PartIntG | State standard Berlin | Complete edition | Participation and Integration Act of the State of Berlin (PartIntG) of December 15, 2010 | valid from: 29.12.2010. Retrieved December 3, 2019 . 
32. ↑ Laws and ordinances | State law NRW. Retrieved December 3, 2019 .