Terrorism combat now opens up for broader EU involvement.
In the heart of Germany, the district of Greiz in Thuringia made history in December 2023 when it introduced the payment card for asylum seekers, marking the first such initiative in the country. This move was part of a broader effort to reduce bureaucracy, improve traceability, and eliminate dangerous cash transports.
However, the implementation of the payment card has not been without controversy. Some argue that it is associated with individual complaints, laborious documentation, and unclear legal situations. Critics also point out that circumvention strategies, such as black markets, exist and are hard to trace, limiting the effectiveness of the payment card.
The cards come with technical blocks preventing transfers abroad, gambling, and alcohol purchases. Yet, the legality of barter exchanges is unclear, with some considering it a minor issue due to small amounts, while others cite the practical difficulty of proving private cash transactions.
The potential for abuse with the payment card is limited but not entirely eliminated. Left-wing organizations in Bavaria, for instance, encouraged refugees to buy vouchers for digital services and then exchange them for cash, effectively undermining the payment card system. Use of the cards is often limited to the place of residence, but acquisitions of vouchers fall under the category of "general retail," allowing restrictions to be circumvented.
Political pressure, particularly in the run-up to East German state elections in 2023, led to a change in this practice. Activists distributed multilingual flyers to specifically reach asylum seekers, advocating for the use of the payment card system as a form of protest. Some MPs opened their constituency offices for such exchange actions.
In April 2024, the Bundestag and Bundesrat created minimum standards for a nationwide introduction of the payment card. As of December 2024, several German federal states began issuing a joint "Secupay/Visa" payment card for asylum seekers in state accommodations. However, specific states that initiated this are not listed in the available information, and there is no clear data about whether the number of voluntary departures has changed as a result.
The concrete design of the nationwide introduction is still largely in the hands of the federal states, as well as the districts and independent cities. In Hannover, where unlimited cash withdrawals were allowed, the number of voluntary departures decreased after the implementation of the card, suggesting a potential benefit in terms of reducing voluntary departures.
For municipalities, the card primarily brings organizational relief. Many municipalities are financially strained, receiving only about one-seventh of all state revenues but bearing over one-quarter of the expenses. The elimination of cash transports and the improved traceability of expenses could provide some relief in this regard.
Christian Erhardt-Maciejewski, a person mentioned in the context, gave a longer interview on the radio station Kontrafunk, providing more detailed background on the card. The interview with SAT1 breakfast television also offers valuable insights into the card's development and implementation.
Controls could theoretically be possible by evaluating transactions, but there is a lack of personnel in practice. No rulings have been made yet on the exchange of payment card vouchers for cash as a form of protest.
As the nationwide introduction of the payment card for asylum seekers continues to unfold, it remains to be seen how effectively it will address the challenges it was designed to address while minimizing the controversies it has sparked.
