A reloadable payment card instead of cash for asylum seekers – already a reality in Germany. 200 payment cards have already been distributed in the state of Thuringia. And in fact the first migrants had already left…
Since the beginning of December, 200 payment cards have been distributed to asylum seekers in the Greiz district of Thuringia. All 740 should have one by the end of the month. But the new model is not only receiving acclaim, reports ‘Bild’. After the switch to the new system, 35 of the 135 asylum seekers have already left the country.
“We don’t want a card, we want cash”
The head of refugee support there describes that there were actually some who stated: “We don’t want a card, we want cash.” Some migrants have therefore already left, says Dagmar Pöhland: “But most of them are happy if they are there just to get something.”
With the payment card you want to ‘separate the wheat from the chaff’, says Pöhland: ‘If you are really on the run, it doesn’t matter how you pay it out. They buy clothes or food.” Young people and individual travelers in particular would use the money to buy overpriced mobile phones. This must end now, because asylum seekers can only shop with their payment card in selected stores.
District administrator: “The mood is heated”
The idea for this came from district administrator Martina Schweinsburg. In this regard, she explains: “The mood in the country is very heated. We do not have any social housing available due to rental to asylum seekers. It is not good if they walk around with hundreds of euro notes in their wallets.”
Other German states now want to follow this example. To have the card topped up, refugees must appear in person at the responsible office. According to Schweinsburg, this is not an unreasonable restriction: “The law requires that you may only stay in the district where you are assigned for the first three months.”
In Austria, people have already become aware of the system. Upper Austrian FPÖ chairman Manfred Haimbuchner wants to investigate the possible implementation in his state.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
