In a surprise budget decision announced late on 21 February 2026, Germany’s Interior Ministry confirmed an immediate halt to new publicly-funded places on the country’s flagship Integration Course programme. For two decades the courses have provided up to 700 hours of subsidised German language tuition and civic orientation to more than four million migrants, ranging from EU movers and Ukrainian war-displaced persons to recognised refugees and tolerated ("Duldung") holders.
Officials say the freeze is necessary to help plug a €1.2 billion hole in the ministry’s 2026 operating budget. Going forward, the €1,600 course fee must be borne by the participant unless the local Jobcenter, foreigners’ authority or social-welfare office issues a compulsory enrolment order. The ministry insists the new approach will “prioritise those with a long-term right to remain” and remove what it calls “false incentives” for short-stay asylum-seekers.
Practitioners and employers reacted with alarm. The German Adult-Education Association (DVV) warns that up to 130,000 teaching and administrative jobs could disappear as classes are cancelled. Mittelstand manufacturers—already struggling to fill shop-floor vacancies—argue that cutting language tuition undermines the Skilled-Worker Immigration Act’s promise of faster labour-market access. HR managers must now decide whether to reimburse course fees themselves or risk longer onboarding times.
![Berlin freezes free integration courses, forcing most newcomers to pay their own way]()
At the individual level, securing the correct entry visa or residence title will now become even more critical; this is where a facilitator such as VisaHQ (https://www.visahq.com/germany/) can step in. The platform guides applicants through German visa categories, document preparation and appointment bookings, and can flag alternative language-learning options or deadlines affected by the Integration Course freeze, helping employers and migrants alike stay compliant while budgets are squeezed.
For migrants, the practical implications are immediate. Without a publicly-funded place, access to B1-level certification—often a prerequisite for permanent residence, naturalisation and many regulated professions—becomes both slower and more expensive. Refugee advocates fear a two-tier system in which well-resourced candidates progress while those on basic benefits remain locked out of the labour market.
Political fallout is also likely. Coalition parties had championed expanded language provision in their 2025 agreement; opposition lawmakers accuse Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt of “budgeting on the backs of newcomers” ahead of next year’s regional elections. Municipalities now face higher welfare costs if migrants cannot transition quickly into work, and programme administrators are lobbying for a mid-year supplementary allocation when the federal budget is revised in June.
Officials say the freeze is necessary to help plug a €1.2 billion hole in the ministry’s 2026 operating budget. Going forward, the €1,600 course fee must be borne by the participant unless the local Jobcenter, foreigners’ authority or social-welfare office issues a compulsory enrolment order. The ministry insists the new approach will “prioritise those with a long-term right to remain” and remove what it calls “false incentives” for short-stay asylum-seekers.
Practitioners and employers reacted with alarm. The German Adult-Education Association (DVV) warns that up to 130,000 teaching and administrative jobs could disappear as classes are cancelled. Mittelstand manufacturers—already struggling to fill shop-floor vacancies—argue that cutting language tuition undermines the Skilled-Worker Immigration Act’s promise of faster labour-market access. HR managers must now decide whether to reimburse course fees themselves or risk longer onboarding times.
At the individual level, securing the correct entry visa or residence title will now become even more critical; this is where a facilitator such as VisaHQ (https://www.visahq.com/germany/) can step in. The platform guides applicants through German visa categories, document preparation and appointment bookings, and can flag alternative language-learning options or deadlines affected by the Integration Course freeze, helping employers and migrants alike stay compliant while budgets are squeezed.
For migrants, the practical implications are immediate. Without a publicly-funded place, access to B1-level certification—often a prerequisite for permanent residence, naturalisation and many regulated professions—becomes both slower and more expensive. Refugee advocates fear a two-tier system in which well-resourced candidates progress while those on basic benefits remain locked out of the labour market.
Political fallout is also likely. Coalition parties had championed expanded language provision in their 2025 agreement; opposition lawmakers accuse Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt of “budgeting on the backs of newcomers” ahead of next year’s regional elections. Municipalities now face higher welfare costs if migrants cannot transition quickly into work, and programme administrators are lobbying for a mid-year supplementary allocation when the federal budget is revised in June.
