Research shows that Syrians who arrived a decade ago are younger, on average 25 years old, and tend to have higher levels of education and good employment rates.
Syrian men who arrived in 2015 have higher employment rates than German-born men.
Many Syrians work in the health sector, including 5,000 Syrian doctors. If the situation in Syria is unstable, they are unlikely to want to leave.
Many have also obtained German citizenship, meaning they have learned the German language and are financially self-supporting: 143,000 Syrians obtained German citizenship between 2021 and 2023, forming the largest nationality to receive a German passport.
But around 700,000 Syrians are still classified as different types of asylum seekers. Some of them are registered as refugees, others have received political asylum, while many have so-called supplementary protection, which means that their country of origin is unsafe.
Freezing decisions on pending applications does not mean that Germany will necessarily stop accepting refugees from Syria once the situation becomes clearer.
And it should not, for the time being, affect those who have already received asylum or refugee status.
But some politicians argue that once the country of origin is no longer dangerous, refugees can return home. In many cases, this can effectively mean the withdrawal of the current right to remain.
Ten years ago, Germany opened its arms to the Syrians. The now heated and polarized political debate will only add to the uncertainty many already feel.
