Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser Defends Payment Card for Asylum Seekers Amid Controversy: City Day Urges Common Regulations

After the cabinet decision to introduce a payment card for asylum seekers, Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) defended the payment card for refugees. “Refugees can use the card to buy groceries and other important things just as they can with cash,” said Faeser the “World on Sunday”. “The card saves the authorities bureaucracy. And it prevents money from going to smugglers.” Meanwhile, the German Association of Cities appealed to the federal states to find common regulations for the payment card.

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City Day curbs euphoria

Otherwise there is a risk of a patchwork quilt, said the association’s general manager, Helmut Dedy, to the “Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland” (RND). The states must now ensure “that the payment card is introduced compulsorily in all their municipalities. And under the same conditions as possible,” demanded the head of the city association. To do this, the state governments would have to clarify, among other things, up to what amount cash can be withdrawn and whether the card is also valid in retail, said Dedy.

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The federal government has launched the legal basis for a payment card for refugees as required by the states. On Friday, the cabinet approved a drafting aid in a circulation procedure, which will now be discussed in the Bundestag. It stipulates that the payment card is expressly mentioned in the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act as a form of receiving social benefits. At the same time, the possibility of use should be expanded so that asylum seekers who do not live in shared accommodation can also receive the card instead of cash benefits.

However, some points are still controversial. As the Evangelical Press Service (epd) learned from government circles, the parliamentary procedure is to examine whether groups of people such as employees, trainees or students can be exempted from the payment card if they have long been receiving the so-called analogue benefits, i.e. basic security. The reason given was that employed people in particular already had a salary account.

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The federal and state governments agreed in November to introduce a payment card for refugees that was as uniform as possible. The card with a debit function without an account connection is primarily intended to be used to pay for purchases. According to the will of the countries, it should exclude the possibility of transferring money to the family in the country of origin. Cash can only be withdrawn with the card to a limited extent. Each federal state should be able to decide for itself how much that will be.

RND/epd

2024-03-03 10:24:09
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