It is the uncertainty that makes things difficult for those affected. Are they allowed to stay in Germany or not? Of course, couples Bolanle, 51, and Martins Dele Lawani, 54, from Nigeria are not the only ones who feel this way. But her example illustrates how difficult it can be to get a right to stay in Germany.
In March 2022, the Lavanis fled the war in Ukraine. They come from Nigeria, in Germany they are currently being trained to become social workers. So in an area where there is a chronic shortage of skilled workers. And yet the district office in Erlangen-Höchstadt issued a decision, according to which they had to leave the country by June 3rd. Martins Dele Lawani wrote in a text message that he was unsettled and worried about what would happen next.
The problem: The couple does not fall under the mass influx directive, which was activated by the EU after the start of the war and with the help of which refugees are granted protection status in every EU country without an asylum procedure. It is valid for Ukrainians. And for people from third countries who were recognized as refugees in Ukraine or have a Ukrainian residence permit and cannot return to their country of origin. However, the residence permit of the Lawanis, who said they ran a clothing store in Kiev, had expired when they fled. According to the Bavarian Ministry of the Interior, they could not prove why it was impossible for them to return to Nigeria.
With a lawyer and refugee care in Herzogenaurach, the couple is fighting the decision, and a lawsuit is pending. In addition, the refugee care in the state parliament has submitted a petition to promote a pragmatic interpretation of the Residence Act in the case. The couple worked in a retirement home in Herzogenaurach for as long as they were allowed to, and for the time after their school education they have already received approval from the home for in-company training.
The Immigration Office suspects that the couple is trying to get the right to stay by trickery
However, this is not enough for the responsible foreigners authority. She accuses the Lawanis of only having started their education in order to sneak in a right to stay. It is not realistic to work in a physically demanding nursing job at her age, so her request is an “obviously abusive attempt” to be allowed to stay in Germany. Rainer Spenger from refugee care calls this a “slap in the face for all nursing staff over 50”.
The refugee aid petition has already cleared the first hurdle: it has been approved and will be dealt with by the petition committee. Exactly when is not yet certain. Only four appointments remain before the parliamentary summer recess. As long as no decision has been made in the committee, at least the decision of the district office will not be implemented. Therefore, the couple is “not threatened with deportation in the near future,” according to the Ministry of the Interior.
However, Rainer Spenger cannot understand why the district office anticipated the decision in the committee at all. From the district office it is said that a petition has “no suspensive effect by law”. And until the lawsuit against the decision has been heard, “no measures to end the stay will be taken”.
A spokeswoman for the Ministry of the Interior also points to the possibility of an asylum application. The couple had already been repeatedly advised to provide one. “Unfortunately, those affected have not followed this recommendation – probably also due to less than optimal advice from others.”
Rainer Spenger from refugee care considers an application for asylum “not an option”. The answer would be that the Lawanis should go to a region of Nigeria where Boko Haram is not present, says Spenger. The Islamists keep attacking Christians like the Lawanis in Nigeria. Spenger says that to apply, the Lawanis would also have to leave their home, their stable environment, and move to an initial reception center for asylum seekers. “At the moment,” he says, “it’s all catastrophic.”