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Asylum numbers have fallen sharply: Magdeburg closes reception center!
In October 2025, the number of asylum seekers in Saxony-Anhalt will fall significantly. Magdeburg closes its facility, Stendal becomes the new contact point.
Asylum numbers have fallen sharply: Magdeburg closes reception center!
In Saxony-Anhalt, asylum policy is anything but hectic. In October 2025, only 269 new arrivals were registered at the central contact point for asylum seekers (ZASt). This decline of 44 percent compared to October 2024, where 478 asylum seekers were counted, and almost 75 percent fewer than in October 2023 (1,078) shows that the situation has noticeably eased. Interior Minister Dr. Tamara Zieschang commented on this trend and, in response, announced the closure of the state reception center (LAE) in Magdeburg at the end of the year. From now on there will be no more new registrations there, which comes as a surprise to many observers.
From January to the end of October 2025, Saxony-Anhalt recorded a total of 2,477 asylum moves, which represents a decrease of 43 percent compared to the same period last year. In the previous year there were 4,345 asylum seekers, while in 2023 6,590 people were registered. These numbers make you sit up and take notice and paint a new picture for the state. According to halle Spektrum.de, this represents a profound change in Saxony-Anhalt's asylum policy.
Closure of the state reception center
The decision to close LAE Magdeburg was not taken lightly. The asylum seekers currently housed in the facility are to be distributed decentrally to the municipalities or relocated to the main office of the ZASt in Halberstadt and the LAE in Stendal by the end of the year. Full commissioning of the LAE Stendal is planned for the end of 2025. These changes may further influence asylum utilization rates in the future. Whether you have a good hand here remains to be seen.
Statistical trends
The numbers also speak for themselves: weekly asylum arrivals averaged 99 people last year. There are currently only 56, which further underlines the trend of decline. But it's not just asylum applications that have decreased. According to statistics.sachsen-anhalt.de, applications for asylum seeker benefits have also fallen by 11.8 percent overall. On December 31, 2024, 11,485 people received standard benefits under the Asylum Seekers Benefits Act (AsylbLG), which corresponds to 1,530 fewer people than in the previous year.
Over 51.9 percent of these benefit recipients lived in Asia before entering the country. This data illustrates the demographic changes among asylum seekers and provides a deeper insight into their origins, with 2,725 of them coming from Syria. The group of underage asylum seekers has also increased: the proportion of children and young people under the age of 18 rose from 21.9 to 25 percent.
These are exciting developments that say a lot about the social and political situation in Saxony-Anhalt. How the situation will evolve remains to be seen, but the declines point to a new era. Authorities are facing new challenges, and it is important to maintain the balance between humanitarian requirements and the needs of the local population.