Germany Deports 457 Nigerians In 18 Months

 

No fewer than 457 Nigerians have been forcibly deported from Germany to Nigeria in the last 18 months, with German authorities hosting or coordinating 14 chartered deportation flights, according to data compiled by the Deportees Emergency Reception and Support team (DERS).

The figures, covering January 2025 to May 2026, show that Germany participated in major monthly deportation operations involving Nigerians from different European countries, with more than 80 per cent of the returnees arriving through Lagos.

DERS records showed that 171 people, including 143 deported directly from Germany, were returned to Nigeria on four charter flights during the first half of 2025. A further 135 people were deported in six operations in the second half of the year.

The deportation operations continued into 2026, with 147 Nigerians returned between January and May in German-hosted joint European Union charter operations. In one of the operations on March 10, 50 returnees arrived in Lagos, including three women and six children.

Germany reportedly accounted for 37 of the 50 people deported during the March operation, which DERS described as the highest single enforcement involving Germany in three years. The operation was conducted jointly with Spain, Austria and Belgium.

DERS also raised concerns over the circumstances surrounding some of the deportations, alleging that some Nigerians had been denied extensions of their residence status after initially being granted temporary protection under Germany's Paragraph 104c scheme.

According to the group, some of those affected were reportedly denied extensions over issues relating to language requirements, employment and the provision of national identity documents.

The organisation also highlighted cases involving families and vulnerable persons. It said a mother and her two children, one of whom was autistic, were among those returned to Nigeria in March, while another mother was deported separately from her children who remained in Germany under the care of child welfare authorities.

DERS further claimed that Stuttgart and Baden-Württemberg were increasingly becoming important centres for Germany's deportation operations, citing deportation flights originating from the region in December 2025 and February 2026.

The group criticised the Nigerian government over what it described as insufficient response to reports of alleged rights abuses associated with deportation exercises and urged Nigerian authorities to pay greater attention to the welfare of returning migrants.

Meanwhile, DERS said deportation operations were also imposing significant financial costs, noting that operations in the first half of 2025 alone involved 351 security personnel and cost about €1.5 million, excluding expenses associated with arrests, court transportation and deportation detention.

The latest figures underline the growing pressure on Nigerians living in Europe without secure immigration status as European countries tighten migration controls and increase efforts to return migrants whose applications for residence or protection have failed.

Germany has consequently emerged as a major centre for deportation operations involving Nigerian nationals, with DERS warning Nigerians currently holding temporary or tolerated status to seek appropriate legal and immigration advice as German authorities continue enforcement operations.