Germany’s spiraling welfare costs have reached a historic record, with newly released government data revealing the country spent €46.7 billion ($53.2 billion) on so-called “citizens’ money” in 2024—a staggering 10 percent increase over the previous year. The primary driver? Mass immigration and a growing welfare-dependent migrant underclass.
Perplexingly, more than half of all recipients of “citizens’ money” are not German passport holders, according to figures from the Federal Employment Agency (BA). In the 15 to 25-year age group, the share of foreign welfare recipients rises to a shocking 71.3 percent.
Since Angela Merkel’s disastrous open-border policy in 2015-2016, which saw over a million migrants admitted, the long-term burden on the German taxpayer has only deepened.
Payments to foreigners have more than tripled, skyrocketing from €6.9 billion ($7.8 billion) in 2015 to €22.2 billion ($25.3 billion) in 2024. Now, the once sturdy German welfare state appears close to buckling under the weight of its own policy excesses.
“These numbers are the result of importing mass poverty,” Alternative for Germany (AfD) Member of European Parliament (MEP) René Springer declared, slamming the establishment’s willful negligence. “We’re not just talking about cultural disintegration, we’re talking about economic suicide.”
Even the center-right, establishment CDU, which has played an outsized role in creating the problem, is now sounding alarm bells. CDU Secretary General Carsten Linnemann admitted the current model is unsustainable: “Once again it shows how urgently this citizen’s allowance must be abolished,” he told the German newspaper Bild. “The new government will tackle this quickly.”
However, many view the CDU’s newfound ‘concern’ as little more than political theater, designed to siphon off conservative votes from the AfD.
Across the board, costs have exploded. The standard rates and social contributions alone climbed by €2.5 billion ($2.8 billion) to €22.1 billion ($25.1 billion). Housing and heating allowances rose by €1 billion ($1.1 billion), bringing the total to €17.7 billion ($20.1 billion). Local municipalities were also forced to shoulder €6.9 billion ($7.8 billion) in accommodation costs—€400 million ($455 million) more than the year prior.
The federal budget is approaching a breaking point. Nearly 50 percent of Germany’s total budget is now consumed by social benefits such as pensions, long-term care, and so-called “citizen’s money.” This marks the highest share since reunification and far exceeds the long-term average, according to the Federal Statistical Office.
To put things into perspective, migration-related expenses alone now rival Germany’s entire defense budget, with the federal government shelling out €28.6 billion ($32.5 billion) this year and another €19.6 billion ($22.3 billion) covered by the federal states and municipalities. Major costs include refugee accommodation, registration, and educational support—all funded by the hardworking German taxpayer.
Social Democrat Minister of Labor Hubertus Heil (SPD) attempted to contain the fallout with his so-called “job turbo” program aimed at integrating welfare recipients into the workforce. The initiative has failed. With 5.5 million people now receiving “citizen’s money,” there is little to show for the socialists efforts.
The draft version of the new coalition agreement includes plans to reform the citizens’ allowance into a more restrictive “basic security” system for job seekers. Officials have proposed tougher sanctions for those who repeatedly refuse work, including full withdrawal of benefits in extreme cases.
Yet critics argue these half-measures come far too late.
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