Germany wanted more foreign workers. A far-right win may rewrite the immigration story

Germany spent years trying to attract foreign workers and make citizenship easier. But the far-right Alternative for Germany’s sweeping victory in Saxony-Anhalt suggests that the country’s immigration policy may now be entering a more restrictive phase.

The AfD won 43.8% of the vote in Sunday’s state election, securing 39 of the 83 seats in the regional parliament. It fell three seats short of a majority, meaning it cannot govern alone. Mainstream parties have also refused to form a coalition with it.

Even so, the result gives Germany’s anti-immigration party its strongest electoral mandate at the state level since the Second World War. It also increases pressure on Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s CDU to adopt tougher positions on migration.

From attracting workers to tightening borders

Germany’s economy has faced labour shortages for years. In response, successive governments introduced measures to make it easier for skilled workers from outside the European Union to enter the country.

The Skilled Immigration Act, introduced in stages from 2023, expanded the routes available to foreign workers. It also created the opportunity card, allowing some people from non-EU countries to enter Germany to look for work.

Germany also changed its citizenship rules in 2024. The new law reduced the standard residency period for naturalisation and allowed citizens to retain their previous nationality in more cases.

These reforms reflected a practical calculation: Germany needed immigrants to support its workforce, tax base and ageing population.

But asylum and irregular migration have increasingly dominated the political debate. The government has already moved towards tighter controls, including stronger border measures and a two-year suspension of family reunification for many migrants with subsidiary protection.

The AfD is changing the political debate

The AfD’s programme calls for sharp restrictions on immigration. Its proposals include stronger deportation efforts, tighter asylum rules and changes to integration policies. In Saxony-Anhalt, the party campaigned on promises to make the state more nationalist and restrict migration.

Reuters reported that the AfD sees the election as a step towards winning national power in the 2029 federal election. The party is already polling ahead of the conservatives nationally, according to a recent INSA survey.

The AfD does not need to enter government immediately to influence policy. Its electoral success can push larger parties to compete for voters by taking harder positions on asylum, deportation and border security.

That process is already visible. Germany has approved legislation to implement the EU’s new asylum system, including wider screening procedures and new restrictions on movement for some asylum seekers. The changes are due to take effect in 2026, although rights groups have criticised them as going beyond what EU rules require.

Immigration will not end overnight

The state election cannot by itself end immigration to Germany. The main rules governing asylum, residence permits, citizenship and labour migration are set at the federal and European levels.

A state government can influence how migrants are accommodated, educated and integrated. It can also affect local enforcement and administration. But it cannot unilaterally abolish the right to seek asylum or cancel national immigration laws.

The bigger change may therefore be political rather than legal. Germany is unlikely to close its doors to skilled migrants while employers continue to face labour shortages. But it may become less welcoming to asylum seekers, refugees and family members joining protected migrants.

The AfD’s win does not mark the end of immigration in Germany. It does suggest that the period of expanding legal routes and presenting immigration mainly as an economic solution is facing a stronger political backlash.

Germany may now be moving towards a two-track system: more selective recruitment of workers the economy needs, alongside tougher rules for asylum seekers and people without a secure right to remain.