German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has announced a crackdown on illegal immigration, with a raft of new measures designed to speed up deportations and make Germany a less attractive destination for people smugglers.

The announcement follows talks between the Chancellor and leaders of the country's 16 states, many of which have complained that local services are struggling to accommodate a spike in new arrivals.

"I believe this is a historic moment," said the Chancellor as he sat alongside state premiers.

"In light of an unquestionably huge challenge with very large numbers of migrants and irregular migration, we have managed for all levels of the state to closely cooperate, which is necessary. People expect this of us," he added.

Accelerate case review time

The new policy calls for an acceleration in how long it takes for asylum seeker cases to be reviewed.

"For regular procedures we want to see a decision by the Ministry for Migration and Refugees within around six months and first-instance decisions by administrative courts should also happen during that time if someone sues," said Scholz.

The leaders also agreed on new measures to reduce so-called 'pull factors' to Germany, including doubling the amount of time it takes for new migrants to receive full social benefits. Authorities estimate that delaying benefit eligibility will save roughly $1 billion a year.

Germany's Federal Statistics office says 230,000 people requested asylum in Germany in the first nine months of this year, more than in the whole of 2022.

The new policies mark a sharp turn from the approach of former Chancellor Angela Merkel, who opened Germany's borders to hundreds of thousands of asylum seekers in response to the war in Syria.

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‌Migration remains one of the most pressing political challenges for Scholz's government. The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party is now consistently polling second place in national surveys, ahead of all three parties that make up the current coalition government.

The AfD has said Germany is experiencing an "asylum crisis" and is campaigning to stop building new asylum seeker accommodation and beef up security checks on the country's borders.

Scholz's center-left coalition government has also announced plans to deport migrants who are members of criminal organizations and harsher sentences for those found guilty of being involved in human trafficking.

"Our shared goal is to push back irregular migration," he told reporters following the meeting with state leaders.

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