Last year, nearly 1,200 migrants from Romania and Bulgaria had their social benefits suspended in Germany, reflecting the varied application of the law at the local level.

Last year, local authorities in Germany recorded nearly 1,200 withdrawals of social benefits Bürgergeld for migrants from Eastern Europe, especially Romanians and Bulgarians. The cities of Duisburg, Gelsenkirchen, Dortmund, and Hagen suspended social benefits for 1,181 citizens, citing a lack of contribution through work. Gelsenkirchen applied the strictest criteria, withdrawing benefits 506 times, while Hagen had only three cases. The mayor of Hagen, Dennis Rehbein, called for stricter rules, believing that the current legislation is too permissive. This situation reflects not only the migration of poverty but also the discrepancies in the application of the law at the local level.