According to the city’s social department, the introduction of the controversial Bavarian payment card for asylum seekers is only conceivable in the third or fourth quarter of this year. Payment cards have been issued in the districts of Fürstenfeldbruck, Günzburg, Traunstein and the independent city of Straubing since March 21st. The Bavarian Interior State Secretary Sandro Kirchner (CSU) rated the test phase as “very successful so far”, which is why 15 more municipalities from all administrative districts will introduce the payment cards by the beginning of May. It is still unclear when the city’s Office for Housing and Migration, which is responsible for around 4,600 asylum seekers in Munich, will start using the payment card.
“The responsible State Ministry of the Interior, Sport and Integration is already in contact with the state capital Munich,” explained a spokesman for the social affairs department. “As soon as the parameters for the introduction have been sufficiently clarified, the state capital of Munich will begin issuing the first payment cards.” An exact time for this has not yet been determined.
The Free State chose the Freising-based e-money institution PayCenter for the prepaid card. The service provider informs that an administration portal is available for the participating municipalities, where the cards can be created and maintained: “The connection to specialist procedures is currently being implemented.” In order to avoid duplicate structures, an interface must be created in collaboration with the city’s IT department, according to the social department, which can link card management with the software used by the housing office.
“We want to limit irregular migration by reducing incentives to move, and we want to relieve the burden on our municipalities,” said Interior State Secretary Kirchner as the goal of introducing the payment card. This credit-based Mastercard can be used to make purchases in all stores that accept Mastercard. With the Bavarian card, only 50 euros per person per month can be withdrawn in cash. Transfers abroad are not possible, online shopping and gambling are excluded, and use can also be limited regionally.
The introduction of the Bavarian payment card, which Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) wants to achieve by the end of the second quarter, has met with criticism from aid organizations. Elena Löber from the Munich Refugee Council doubts that the number of arrivals will decline: “The discourse about so-called pull factors is by no means scientifically proven, but is repeatedly used politically in order to be able to implement the most repressive measures possible.” In practice, there are numerous problems, from the baker who does not accept card payments at all or only accepts card payments from five euros upwards, to lawyers who have not yet been approved for transfers. This deprives people of the opportunity to assert their rights, explained Löber.
The Munich Greens’ migration and refugee working group also wants to deal with the payment card this Wednesday, which rejects the Bavarian special payment card option for refugees: “We see this as discrimination.”