Challenges
from a refugee
Najm actually came to us because he needed an “escort to an appointment at the Heinsberg immigration office”. Here you will find a chronological sequence of what Najm’s challenges actually were and how we were able to overcome them. The aim of our work is to bring transparency to the processes and to encourage the refugees to participate. This is the only way to find solutions to the challenges as quickly as possible, in dialog – together with the refugees and the authorities.
Najm contacted us with the request to support him with an appointment at the immigration office. According to him, it is about his residence permit which is to be extended. We have agreed with him that he should come to our office with his documents so that we can check the process.
Najm came to our office with his documents so that we could get an overview of the overall situation. Several discrepancies have already become apparent when reviewing the documents.
Challenge 1: Residence permit
His residence permit expires on 31.07.2024. Until then, he must have a valid registration address in Wassenberg.
Challenge 2: Registration address
According to Najm, he no longer lives in the refugee home in Wassenberg. However, a registration certificate from the town of Wassenberg was in his documents. Dated 10.07.2023 - Is this current or have there been changes in the meantime? According to Najm, "he is deregistered there because he can no longer receive mail". This must be checked and verified with the town of Wassenberg.
Challenge 3: Redistribution application
According to Najm, he has submitted a redistribution application to the Arnsberg district government. Relocation from Wassenberg to Hückelhoven. However, the original application is in his documents, which is an indication that it was never sent. A corresponding notification is therefore missing from his documents.
Challenge 4: Identity documents
His current passport has already expired.
His residence permit expires on 31.07.2024. If he does not have his residence permit extended on 18.07.2024, he will no longer have any valid identity documents.
Challenge 5: Obligation in the residence permit
The residence permit contains the following note: "The holder is obliged to endeavor to renew his/her passport". Accordingly, we need a document from the Syrian consulate in Brussels/Belgium confirming the efforts. Furthermore, a residence requirement of the town of Wassenberg is noted.
Challenge 6: Benefits from the job center
The current notice of approval for benefits from the job center expires on 31.07.2024. No application for further approval has yet been submitted.
Feedback 1: Residentless
Najm was deregistered from the asylum home by the town of Wassenberg on 01.01.2024. Reason: He is not staying there. He has already moved out there unofficially 3 times and is currently unknown. Officially deregistered.
Feedback 2: Registration address
Najm must move back into the asylum home immediately, in accordance with his residence requirement. This is his last chance, as he has already moved out 3 times and only needs a place to live because of his residence permit extension. There is a risk that it will then disappear again, unknown.
Feedback 3: Immediate move into the asylum home required
Najm must move back into the asylum home immediately. The move-in date is scheduled for 05.07.2024 at 12:00 noon (key handover and container allocation)
Feedback 4: Proof of stay on site
Najm must register daily in the on-site application list. The town of Wassenberg agrees to register him again in Wassenberg if he has been on the attendance list continuously for 2 weeks (prerequisite for the residence permit).
As it turned out, Najm has been living with his brother in Hückelhoven for the last 6 months. Najm has asked us to help with the move. When he collects his things, he notices that a mattress is also included. According to him, he "borrowed" them from the asylum center. After we conducted the admission interview together on site, Najm was assigned his container, which he has to share with 2 other refugees.
As the asylum home is difficult to reach by public transport, we decided to make a food donation for Najm and his 2 roommates. We buy a total of 16x 6-packs of water and many long-life staple foods. (no tobacco or alcoholic beverages).
We have an appointment with the person in charge at Najm. We clarify the details and which documents Najm needs to submit. Including the account statements from 01.01.2024 to 30.06.2024. We also take the opportunity to ask for an appointment with a job placement officer for the program for under 25-year-olds.
The town of Wassenberg issues a referral order with immediate enforcement to prevent homelessness. Najm must undertake to actively search for accommodation and provide the relevant evidence. He is not entitled to a specific room unit and is aware that the accommodation in the asylum home is only temporary and not permanent.
We inform Najm about the interim status and ask him for the necessary documents (bank statements) for his application for further approval. Together we complete the application and have identified the next challenge. Najm no longer has any account statements or access to his savings bank account. He can no longer access the Sparkassen app or provide any documents.
As Najm has been rehoused in the container in Wassenberg with his 2 roommates, he has been given a key for this container.
To ensure that these keys are handled with care, a key deposit of €60.00 is charged.
This is a large sum for a refugee without a fixed income.
Accordingly, as a non-profit organization, we have assumed these costs.
We have an appointment at Sparkasse Wassenberg. She is very friendly and helps us straight away. Very good, fast and competent service. Najm has access to his account again via the Sparkassen app and we were able to print out all the account statements.
We submitted all the necessary documents on Najm's behalf using a power of attorney and submitted the application for continued approval. Feedback will follow in the form of a decision in the coming days.
We comply with the obligation arising from the referral order and provide the town of Wassenberg with the appropriate documentation of the active search for accommodation in Wassenberg (in accordance with the residence requirement). We contact all landlords of the 4 apartments on offer in Wassenberg. We offer the landlords that we would take over a joint and several guarantee for Najm and also pay the deposit. However, none of the landlords are prepared to sign a tenancy agreement with Najm. All 4 apartments that are currently offered for rent in Wassenberg are within the price range that the Jobcenter would accept (between 35-60% more expensive). This makes things even more difficult.
According to Najm, he could move into his brother's apartment. We checked this information with the landlord. The result: Yes, it is possible. We made an appointment for 19.07.2024. Goal: Najm can move in with his brother in the apartment, the landlord fills out the landlord confirmation. As Najm does not currently have the chance of finding accommodation in Hückelhoven, we will apply to the Arnsberg district government to have the residence regulation lifted as soon as Najm has a job with social security obligations.
As we want to ensure that Najm can register at the asylum home again on 18.07.2024, we are holding talks with the town of Wassenberg.
The registration of residence is a prerequisite for the extension of his residence permit.
Since both appointments are on the same day (registration with the city of Wassenberg in the morning and the extension of the residence permit with the Heinsberg immigration office in the afternoon).
However, the city of Wassenberg informs us that it is currently no longer possible to register residence because Najm has not fulfilled his obligation to register daily in the application list.
We talk to Najm about this and he assures us that he has fulfilled this obligation.
We meet at the asylum center in the afternoon to check the attendance list.
On site, it turns out that Najm has simply made a mistake in the lines.
Instead of entering the correct dates on 15.07.2024 and 16.07.2024, he has entered the dates for the weekend.
However, these are the date lines 13.07.2024 and 14.07.2024.
The entries for the weekdays were therefore missing.
After checking the process and providing the appropriate documentation, the town of Wassenberg approved his residence registration again on 18.07.2024.
After visiting Najm's brother's apartment in Hückelhoven, we decided to continue our support with a donation in kind so that Najm also has a place to sleep. We bought a mattress, a bed frame, a slatted frame and a bedside table via Ebay classifieds, which we then transported to Najm's brother and set up.
As Najm has fulfilled his obligation from the referral order and has also registered for 2 weeks in the attendance list in the Wassenberg asylum home, the town of Wassenberg has given permission for him to register again in the asylum home.
This is the prerequisite for the extension of his residence permit.
Without a permanent residence, the foreigners authority cannot extend the residence permit.
Najm's residence permit was extended. We were able to change his residence requirement from a residence requirement to a residence regulation due to his positive asylum procedure (protection status).
The most important difference: This is limited until 18.07.2026, after which Najm can choose his own place of residence.
A further and decisive advantage is that Najm can now look for a job subject to social security contributions anywhere in the state of NRW and can apply to have the residence regulation lifted once he has started work (receipt of his first payslip).
In a personal conversation, the landlord informs us of his decision not to register another tenant in the tenancy agreement and he also refuses to register a residence.
His experience with past tenants has shown that this has always led to problems.
The challenge he sees is the following empirical value: The ancillary costs are set at € 50.00 (maximum value accepted by the Jobcenter for the size of the apartment).
This means that the landlord receives €600.00 per year in service charges.
From experience, the annual bill is € 1,200.
This means that there will already be an estimated additional payment of € 600.00.
From experience with past landlords, he knows that this will lead to installment payment agreements, as the tenants cannot pay this sum all at once.
Unfortunately, he has only had negative experiences with tenants when it comes to paying in installments.
His fear is that if Najm were to move in, the service charges would increase and the difference between the monthly installments and the actual service charge bill would then be significantly higher, which would also significantly increase his risk.
From the landlord's point of view, he only sees additional risks and no reason to take them.
The meeting lasted a total of 2.5 hours during which we, as a non-profit organization, discussed all the risks for the landlord and offered solutions.
We also find a solution for the service charge settlement and a further monthly additional payment of €100.00 so that there should be no additional payment with the upcoming service charge settlement.
In short, without our support, it would simply not have been possible for Najm to move into his brother's existing apartment.
We make an appointment with the Najm job agency and discuss career prospects. Najm graduated from high school in Syria and studied for a total of 3 years. The documents are available to us and are now being officially notarized. The aim is for Najm to find an apprenticeship or to complete a pre-vocational training program (BvB). Placement directly in a job is also an option for Najm.
In order for Najm to move out of the Wassenberg asylum home (residence regulation), we have to submit an application to the Arnsberg district government to have the residence allocation lifted.
The challenge here is that Najm must have a job that is subject to social security contributions. The landlord confirmation from Najm's brother's landlord has already been received. The living space would therefore already be secured.
We start looking for a job for Najm in the Heinsberg district.
It is important that we find a job for Najm that is subject to social security contributions and with which he can earn a living.
The goal is a permanent employment contract.
We are working with a large network of potential employers and are very confident that we will find a suitable job for Najm in the next 4 weeks.
And then to start the further processes.
Firstly, lifting the residence requirement by applying to the Arnsberg district government and secondly, registering his residence in Hückelhoven with his brother.
Thirdly, the subsequent move from the asylum home to his brother.
We have had many discussions with potential employers.
One of the challenges is the German language.
Although Najm successfully completed his B1 German language course, this knowledge is often not enough to qualify him for the right job.
Nevertheless, we have managed to find Najm a permanent job from 01.08.2024.
We received the employment contract from the employer today, checked it and approved it.
We then visited Najm at the asylum center in Wassenberg so that he could countersign the employment contract.
After we fulfilled all the legal requirements, our application to lift the residence regulations was confirmed by a positive decision.
This is a very important step for Najm, as he is now no longer tied to his place of residence within the town of Wassenberg, but can move freely around Germany and therefore also look for work outside of Wassenberg, as well as an apartment.
Today we successfully registered Najm in the city of Hückelhoven.
From now on, he no longer has to live in the asylum home in Wassenberg, but now lives with his brother in an apartment in Hückelhoven.
After dealing with the last of the authorities, we drove to the asylum home in Wassenberg and took his things to Hückelhoven.
We clarified the move out of the asylum home in Wassenberg with the town of Wassenberg so that everyone involved is now informed about his move to Hückelhoven.
To ensure that Najm continues to receive his mail, we have placed a forwarding order with Deutsche Post.
This ensures that he receives his mail from Wassenberg to Hückelhoven.
We have also selected the option that the sender of the mail is notified of Najm's new address in Hückjelhoven.
So that Najm can be integrated in Germany in the best possible way, we have decided to collect donations for him to enable him to get his driver's license.
Najm already has a Syrian driver's license and therefore only the costs for the certified translation, registration, theory documents incl.
the learning app.
We were able to finance these costs of €475.00 through donations.
Now we only have to add the costs for the theory test, the practical test and possibly a few driving lessons.
We are confident that we will also be able to finance these additional costs through donations.