Friedland and moving to permanent residence. Camp for displaced people in Friedland, Germany. From camp to home

15 km from German city Göttingen, in Lower Saxony, is located a small locality, which plays the role of the first port of call for all those who seek salvation and protection in Germany. By the beginning of the 2000s, this place was practically empty, and it was decided to transform its territory into memorial museum. But by 2014, the situation had changed dramatically, and today the once-lost significance settlement is again overcrowded with refugees and migrants in need of asylum. Knowing what the Friedland camp is like today will be useful for anyone planning to move to this part of Europe as a migrant.

How the camp came to be

The appearance of a place of temporary residence for migrants in this part of the country is not accidental. The camp was founded at the very end of World War II. It was here that three zones of occupation came into contact: Soviet (Thuringia), English (Lower Saxony) and American (Hesse). If we add that between the three of them passed the most important railway lines of that time between Kassel and Hanover, then we can say that the location of the founding of the settlement was predetermined.

The idea of ​​setting up the camp was put forward by British troops, who chose the territory of the research laboratories of the University of Göttingen. The Friedland camp for displaced persons began operating on September 20, 1945. IN different years it was used for different purposes:

• the first inhabitants were released prisoners returning from the USSR;
• Then came defectors from the territory of the GDR to the lands of the Federal Republic of Germany;
• in the 1980s, Soviet migrants were settled in Friedland;
• later - “Russian Germans”.

In the middle of the 20th century, there were a considerable number of such places of settlement of late settlers. But due to the fact that their flow has gradually decreased, today only Friedland remains operational.

How can I get to the camp?

You can get to Friedland in different ways:

• by plane to Hannover, from there by train to Göttingen and then a little further to the final destination by train.
• By railway. This method of arriving from Russia is not the most convenient: only in Germany you will need to make two transfers - in Berlin and in Kassel. Considering the number of things a migrant may have, it becomes clear that this is not an easy option.
• flight to Hannover, then by taxi to the camp. This pleasure will cost approximately 220 euros.
• by bus from the Russian Federation - the journey is the longest and not the most comfortable.

As an option, you can contact intermediary companies that provide relocation services in Germany, meet you at the airport and then take care of all the transfer concerns.

What awaits displaced people in the camp?

The main goal of the camp is to register new arrivals and resettle them throughout German territory. The period for which newcomers can be accepted is 3-4 days. This time is enough to carry out the following procedures:

• checking available documents and compliance with the data in the application form;
• conducting fluorography;
• passing an interview with representatives of the employment center.

In order not to get confused in the upcoming actions, the refugee receives a special sheet containing the schedule and location of certain events.

During this entire period, the migrant lives in a room allocated for him. Immediately upon arrival, new residents are given vouchers for use in the dining hall. And although food at public expense cannot be called varied and complete, it is enough to satisfy basic needs. There is a store on the territory of the settlement where you can buy missing products.

The main problem of those seeking asylum is lack of knowledge of the German language. For this purpose, it would be good to enlist the support of relatives, if they exist in Germany. If not, the state is ready to help by providing an interpreter.

During the process of identification and registration, the migrant has the opportunity to change the spelling of his last name and first name according to the German model.

For example, “Ivan” can become “Johan”, and “Stepan” can become “Stefan”. Please note that you can make changes and abandon the Russian patronymic (it is not accepted in Germany) for free only once. All further attempts to make adjustments, even if it is just one letter, will cost 200 euros.

Concerning national composition camp, today it accepts not only ethnic Germans. In 2009, the first refugees from Iraq arrived here. In 2013, Friedland became a refuge for the first Syrian migrants. Today, this organization works beyond its capabilities, providing a roof over the heads of people from Libya, Afghanistan, and Syria.

How is distribution for permanent residence carried out?

The final stage is distribution for permanent residence throughout the country. Only in recent years has this procedure begun to be carried out taking into account the wishes of the migrant. Previously, he had no choice and had to put up with any decision of the commission.

To get to the right place, a newcomer only needs to indicate in his profile the region and even the locality in which he would like to settle. However, no one can guarantee that this desire will be satisfied. But in any case, officials try to accommodate the applicant halfway.

The migrant receives a document with his new data, which will serve as his identity card. Along with it, the late migrant is given tickets to his new place of residence and 102 euros for each family member. This amount will at least partially compensate for the funds spent on the journey to Friedland.

It is important to understand that the refugee camp in Germany is the primary point of reception for those in need of help. The document that they are given after registration simply confirms that they arrived in the country legally, have been registered and are ready to move permanently to their chosen region. The process of legalization and recognition of a candidate as a migrant or refugee begins at the place of his permanent residence.

What is the Otto Benecke Foundation?

Migrants who managed to obtain a higher technical education before moving to Germany have special privileges. In particular, an engineering diploma allows a newcomer to receive a referral to the Otto Benecke Foundation.

The main mission of the Foundation is to provide special non-refundable scholarships to engineers who came from Eastern European countries. The money received allows you to retrain or improve your existing qualifications. This makes it possible to adapt as much as possible to the German labor market and get a good position with a high income.
Foreign specialists are being retrained at one of the German universities with which the Foundation has signed a corresponding agreement. In addition to this project, the organization supports various educational programs that allow migrants to arrange their future in new conditions.

Rapid Integration Courses

Arrived at permanent place the new migrant is concerned about speedy integration into a society that is still alien to him. Thanks to the help of the state, which undertakes not only the reception, but also their arrangement, the late migrant has the opportunity, on the basis of his registration certificate, to take advantage of free courses that will help assimilate with the world in the shortest possible time. local population. The duration of the courses is 6 months. During the training, the beginner receives basic information on all aspects of life in Germany:

• legislation,
• features of the culture and traditions of the German nation.

The process of acquiring knowledge is divided into 6 modules. Each of them contains 100 hours of lessons. The entire course is divided into two main groups: language and orientation. Lessons in the first of them allow you to master German in the most necessary areas: visiting a doctor, making a telephone conversation, going to a cafe or restaurant. The orientation course introduces migrants to culture, legislation and other adaptation issues.

After the courses are completed, the student will have to pass the B1 exam and receive a certificate. If a migrant plans to go to university, he will have to continue his studies.

conclusions

Conceived back in 1945 as , Friedland today welcomes under its roof immigrants from all over the world who are fleeing war and unfavorable living conditions.

Russian migrants can get here by direct bus or plane. The further journey upon arrival in the country will have to be planned taking into account the composition of the family and the amount of luggage available, since there will be more than one transfer.

Upon arrival at the camp, newcomers can count on living space, food, and medical support. After registering and filling out everything Required documents, migrants head to their place of permanent residence, where they will begin.

Camp Friedland: Video

The reception camp for the late settlers of Friedland was located in a small village on the southern outskirts of the federal state of Lower Saxony in Germany. The camp is subordinate to the federal agency BVA. Late settlers who have received Aufnahmebescheid arrive at this camp for initial registration and completion of the initiated procedures under the late settler program.

Camp Friedland - personal experience

My arrival at the Friedland camp was in November 2014. At that time there was a huge influx of refugees and the camp was overcrowded. As a result, they could not accommodate me in the camp - there were no places. At the expense of the federal department, I was accommodated in a hotel located in a neighboring town. In total, the procedures in the camp took about a week, after which I was already assigned to the city where I live now.

The Friedland resettlement camp accepts new residents on weekdays and weekends. You can find the resettlement camp at: Bundesverwaltungsamt - Außenstelle Friedland, Heimkehrerstr. 16, 37133 Friedland, Germany. The registration itself and the work hours of officials are from Monday to Friday. You will only have to communicate with officials and camp workers in German. If your knowledge does not allow this, you should think about a relative or friends who can help in this situation. Understanding officials is simply vital.
You will be provided with clean bed linen, keys to the room in the camp, and a sheet indicating the authorities that you will need to go through. The Friedland late migrant camp is, of course, not a five-star hotel, but it is quite possible to stay there for a couple of days. We'll talk more about interviews, procedures and questionnaires below.

Fluorography

First of all, they send you to a neighboring town for fluorography. At the clinic we found ourselves in, four people entered different doors at a time, so the line went very quickly and did not cause any inconvenience. You find yourself alone in the room, so you calmly shoot up and move on. Upon completion, get dressed and go out to the others. After finishing X-raying adults, doctors begin examining children. Children are not given x-rays - they are examined by therapists, ENT specialists and other doctors. Upon completion, you will be provided with a certificate with the result of your examination and you will return to the Friedland camp

Initial registration

Afterwards, you will have to visit the BVA federal office. It is located right in the Friedland camp. They will provide questionnaires with questions written in German (explanations in Russian can be found below each question) - it is important to remember that the questionnaires must be filled out exclusively in German. A rough list of questions looks like this:

• FULL NAME
• Age
• Where are you from?
• Education
• Work experience (where and when and by whom did you work)
• Relatives in Germany, where they live
• Religion
• Where would you like to live in Germany

The forms are handed over to officials and there will be several hours of waiting. Next, they call the official, the forms and documents are checked. They ask questions, but this is not just a sincere conversation - everything is entered into the computer.

Allocation to permanent residence

A few days later I again had a meeting with an official of the federal department. This was a different official than the one who registered me. It turned out that they had been looking for me since the morning, but I was at the hotel and did not know about it. In the office, the official asked me where I would like to live - in which city and land. I asked to go to the city to visit my relatives and he sent a request to that city about the opportunity to receive me, asking me to sit in the waiting room in the meantime. After an hour of waiting, I was called back into his office. On his desk he already had ready-made documents stating that I had been registered at the Friedland camp, a direction to and a direction to the hostel of the city where I was assigned. They settled me in a different city than where I originally asked. Now I live 400 km from the city where I wanted to go.

The choice of city and land where you would like to live is limited - it all depends on the city’s ability to accept you. There is a high probability of living where you would like, if you have relatives in this city and the opportunity to register you with them at least for the first time, not yet.

Final stage

The last thing I visited in the Friedland late migrant camp was the Jobcenter. There they also gave me a certain questionnaire, which I later submitted to Jobcenter in my city. So they began to accrue me a “late resettlement allowance.” Later, I notified the camp management that all procedures were completed and I was given 110 euros - partial compensation for the cost of the flight to Germany. They also bought me a train ticket so I could get to the city. In the morning I handed over the keys to the room, received a few more documents and went to the station. This was the end of my stay in the Friedland displaced persons camp.

The first goal after returning to the historical homeland is a distribution camp for the city center. It opens the door to various categories of migrants: refugees, Jews, from the former USSR.

How to get to Friedland

• It is convenient to fly to Hannover by plane, then go by train to Göttingen and then take a few minutes by train.
• But if you fly to Leipzig, Berlin, Frankfurt am Main or Dresden, the journey won't get much longer.

German train services are excellent, with trains running quickly and frequently. Pay attention to the ticket price and arrival time.

Arrival in Friedland, building No. 16 in the background, where interviews are taking place.

It is inconvenient to travel from Russia by train. The route Berlin - Kassel - Friedland has two transfers in Germany. For a traveler laden with belongings, it’s hardly the best option to hop around train stations.

The services of private companies provide maximum comfort. Arrivals will be met at the airport or train station and taken directly to. Transfer from Hannover costs approximately 200€.

TRANSFER TO FRIEDLAND

Get to Friedland in comfort! A Russian-speaking driver will meet you at Hannover airport, help you load your luggage onto the bus and take you straight to the gates of the resettlement camp in Friedland.

ORDER TRANSFER

If you are interested in how to get to the camp of late migrants cheaper, choose a bus. It takes longer and is least convenient.

What awaits you there

Friedland's task is the initial registration of newly arrived Germans and resettlement throughout the territory of Germany. The average length of stay is 3 days.

Plan of a camp for late settlers in Friedland

Working days are from Monday to Friday, but moving in new residents on weekends is not a problem. Arrive on Sunday, and start solving matters on Monday - a good option. The registration procedure takes place in building No. 1.

When you arrive at the Friedland IDP camp, you will receive a sheet with designated reception hours, forms to fill out, a key to the room, and a pass card to the dining room for the family. Everyone receives gifts from charitable organizations - clothes and dictionaries.

It is not necessary to live in the camp area. rent a hotel or stay with friends/relatives if the person agrees not to be late.

If your knowledge of German does not allow you to communicate freely, you can interview a relative or friend who speaks the language. No one will be sent back for language ignorance, but it is absolutely necessary to understand exactly what the officials are saying. It is impossible to answer unequivocally what questions are asked - everything is personal.

Check-in, document verification, medical procedures

Arriving Germans are accommodated in buildings No. 5-7. The dining room is located in building No. 4 (at the entrance they check the presence of a card and put a stamp).

Dormitory room at the camp in Friedland

The rooms and bed linen are clean. Not a hotel, but for a couple of days the weather doesn't work. Near the door to the room there is a sign on which the family's name, the number of residents and the date of arrival are written.

In building No. 16, late migrants undergo a check of papers and personal data specified in the application form.

What documents need to be prepared for the first appointment:

1. Completed forms
2. Aufnahmebescheid
3. Passports and birth and marriage certificates of family members

The questionnaire indicates the desired place of residence in Germany, which is discussed at the second interview.

Residents of the Friedland camp undergo fluorography during their stay. On the appointed day, the group is collected in the morning and taken by bus to Göttingen, where medical examinations are carried out.

An example of lunch in the Friedland camp canteen

About health insurance and assistance

From the moment of arrival until distribution, all necessary medical care is provided free of charge. After registration for permanent residence in the first 78 weeks of health insurance The regional cash office AOK is responsible, regardless of status and benefits.

• Further, state insurance for the unemployed is paid by the state.
• Employees can continue to work at AOK or change companies at their own discretion.
• Entrepreneurs choose between private and voluntary insurance.

Registrierschein

After completing the interviews at the Friedland IDP camp and signing the distribution documents, a registration certificate is issued and free tickets to your place of residence.

In the dormitories of the Friedland camp there are children's corners for games in bad weather.

Persons with §4 who were born before 1956 are entitled to a one-time compensation - Eingliederungshilfe. The size varies depending on the date of birth and ranges from 2000-3000 €. You can receive money in Friedland or upon arrival for permanent residence.

From camp to home

The choice of federal state and city is limited by availability and budget.

• The south and center of Germany are overpopulated with refugees.
• Russian Germans are often offered the north of Germany.
• You can get to the desired land if you have relatives who are ready to register you with them.

The result of the distribution depends greatly on the official. Personal charm will have to be turned on at full strength. If the city does not have a budget for benefits, new arrivals are denied in any case.

They will be assigned to the selected location if you own your own property in the country or voluntarily refuse social benefits.

Become a German citizen

You are allocated a room in a hostel or an apartment paid for by social services.

Further actions:

1. The first step is to contact the city hall - Rathaus, and register in Germany.
2. A copy of the registration confirmation received must be sent to Camp Friedland at BVA.
3. You will be sent a certificate of late migration - Spätaussiedlerbescheinigung, upon receipt of which you become citizens of the Federal Republic of Germany.

The time has come to issue German passports - the mayor's office is responsible for issuing them. But first, you are allowed to contact the registry office - Standesamt to change the spelling of names and surnames in the German manner. The procedure is performed once free of charge, then correcting the letter costs 200 €.

Important! Children born between their arrival in Friedland and their parents' receipt of settlement certificates do not receive German citizenship. Perhaps in the future the legal incident will be corrected, but for now it is better for late-term pregnant women not to leave before giving birth in order to avoid bureaucratic red tape that takes several years. Moving in with a newborn does not bring any problems. The birth of a child after one of the parents has received a certificate also automatically gives the baby German citizenship.

Read more about financial and housing issues

It's difficult to get out of the hostel. You will be offered social apartments if there are any available, but in most cases you will have to look for housing on your own.

The apartment must meet the payment terms for low-income people. The specific sizes depend on the city; Jobcenter is responsible for paying for housing for those who are able to work, and Sozialamt for those who are not able to work. It is necessary to coordinate actions with the department. If everything complies with the rules, you receive payment guarantees and can move out of the hostel.

You will have to communicate with social service officials from day one. Jobcenter issues forms for able-bodied family members to register with the labor exchange.

• Those who can work are paid unemployment.
• Those who are unable to work apply for benefits at Sozialamt.
• For children under 18 who have moved, Kindergeld benefits are issued.

Resettlement under §4 opens up the right to re-credit pensions earned in the former USSR. To confirm your work experience, you will need a work record book and a PF certificate from the country of departure on the amount of contributions paid. The papers must be given to the state pension fund - Rentenversicherung.

To deposit money, you must open an account in a German bank.

Depending on the land and the specific banking institution, it may be necessary to obtain a tax number. This issue is resolved at the mayor's office or directly at the tax office - Finanzamt.

After completing the procedures, 102 € will be credited for each family member. They partially compensate for the journey to the refugee camp in Germany.

If you provide proof of travel expenses above this amount, you may be eligible for more compensation. Arrival by car is also subject to compensation. Keep proof of purchase of tickets, gasoline, and any transportation expenses to Friedland.

• After distribution and receipt of passports, you are allowed to move to any city you wish. But the housing issue will have to be resolved independently.
• Social benefits and the right to attend integration courses are retained in full.
• Those receiving benefits must make prior arrangements with the authorities of the city where they are moving to in order to continue receiving social assistance and housing payments. An unapproved move may result in loss of benefits.

Advanced training and German language

If you immigrate with an engineering degree, the camp will refer you to the Otto Benecke Foundation. The organization provides free scholarships to engineers arriving from Eastern European countries. With this money, a technical specialist can improve his qualifications or retrain in the German way at one of the higher educational institutions with which the fund has entered into an agreement. Migrants under 31 years of age receive assistance with the recognition of diplomas.

With a registration certificate you can take free integration courses lasting six months. For permission to take courses, please contact the Office for Foreigners - Ausländeramt. If the distance to the venue is more than 3 kilometers, a free pass for public transport is included.

The course volume is 600 hours (an additional module on basic life issues in the country is optional). The content roughly repeats the content of this site, only in German.

It is unrealistic for a working person to take courses; there is simply nowhere to get so much time.

The history of the camp in Friedland

The camp was created in this town not by chance. It was built immediately after the war. We chose a place at the junction of 3 occupation zones: British, Soviet and American.

• At first, former prisoners returning from the USSR were settled there.
• Then they were used to receive defectors from the GDR to the Federal Republic of Germany.
• Since 1980, migrants from Soviet Union, and then people with German “roots”.

Previously, there were several such camps for the resettlement of ethnic Germans, but then the migration flow dried up, and this moment Only Friedland remains open.

Frequently asked questions and discussion of the PP topic on the forum

Based on materials from the site www.tupa-germania.ru

After arriving in Germany, I, like all late migrants, had to arrive at the camp of late migrants in Friedland.

I would like to start with the fact that I flew all night on the plane, since this was the first time in my life that I was not able to sleep on the plane. And so, having arrived at the camp at 12 noon, I, sleepy and powerless, planned to quickly get the key and fall asleep where I would be accommodated. The first step was to visit the commandant to somehow inform about yourself and get the keys. Since it was 12 noon, the commandant said that she had lunch. She asked me to wait and sit in the corridor. This is where the fun began. Returning half an hour later, the commandant began calling everyone except me over the speakerphone. After sitting for another two hours waiting, I felt like I was going to collapse and fall asleep right in the corridor, and besides, I really wanted to eat. Unable to bear it, I went ahead, upon entering I gave my call, my passport and asked to be processed. The commandant handed my papers to the girl sitting next to me at the computer, apparently an employee of a federal department. It took me a long time to write something down and return the documents to the commandant. Then the commandant gives me the papers and declares that there is no room in the camp and they are ready to put me up in a hotel or offered to stay with my closest relatives. My closest relatives lived in Bavaria and therefore I agreed to a hotel without hesitation. Again they asked me to wait in the corridor. And after sitting until 16.30, afraid to go anywhere, they would suddenly call me, a young girl comes out and says that I can take my suitcase, in 10 minutes her colleague will take me to the hotel. Having taken the suitcase, an older man met me, opened the trunk and I, putting my luggage there, tiredly sat down in the back seat. We drove for about 20 minutes and stopped at some village, as it turned out later it was resort town, we stopped near some hotel. I pulled out my luggage and followed the man, he came up to the reception, said a few words, pointed his finger at me, and left. I went up to the reception and they asked me a couple of questions whether I smoked or something like that. Then they told me what time it was for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Nodding my head wearily, I climbed into my room. It was surprisingly nice, a wonderful shower, TV, but it was cold, very cold... then I learned that I had to turn on the batteries myself. Having turned on the battery, I took a shower and at 18 pm I fell asleep without my hind legs and slept until lunch the next day. After lunch, I saw that I was not the only Russian speaker. Besides me, 3 other families of late migrants lived in the hotel. We all met and talked for a couple of days until we were told at one of the breakfasts that tomorrow at 10 am a bus would pick us up and take us to the procedures. The next day, at exactly 10, a bus arrived with about 20 people and us. The girl announced through a voice recorder throughout the bus that there is now war in Syria and therefore there are many refugees in the camp, asked us to sympathize with them and said that the employees are no less interested than us in getting us processed quickly. Then I called everyone on the bus by last name and noted who was there and who wasn’t. My last name was already there. Afterwards, she walked around the bus and gave everyone a form and a slider in which it was written who we needed to visit.

Fluorography

First of all, we arrived in a neighboring town where the same girl who was on the bus took us to Fluorography. Entering the hospital, we were led into a corridor with 4 doors. One person went into each of them; when I went there, I found myself in a small room, as I understood, I had to undress there. Having taken off my outer clothing, I opened the next door and there the doctor took me to the machine and asked me not to breathe. Literally a couple of minutes later he nodded his head as if to sign that everything was done and I got dressed again and went out to everyone. We were asked to be in one place and not disperse. Having gone through everything Fluorography the same girl said that now the children will be examined. For children Fluorography didn't do it. The children were examined by therapists and ENT specialists... Everyone passed the examination safely, everyone was given the results and we were taken to Friedland.

Initial registration

Then we were taken to the federal department, where they told us to fill out the forms that they gave us on the bus. It is written there in German and below in Russian, but fill it out exclusively in German. There were questions like this:

1. FULL NAME
2. Age
3. Where
4. Education
5. Work experience, where and when and by whom did you work?
6. Relatives in Germany, where they live
7. Religion
8. Where would I like to live in Germany

And everything like that. Afterwards we were called by name and taken into the office of an official who checked our forms and entered the data into the computer.

Afterwards we were put on a bus and taken to our hotels.

Secondary registration

Literally a couple of days later they called us and said that a minibus would arrive and to be ready with our things. The next day we were brought to the camp with our things. There they gave me the key to the room and told me to go back to the building of the federal department for term. When I got there I found out that they had been looking for me since the morning. I said that I had arrived and literally 30 minutes later the official who called me was not the same one who was in the first term, there was another official and he already took me to his office and there he also filled out something and then said that he had submitted a request to the land and city where I want to live. I asked me to sit and wait. After sitting for about an hour, he called me again and already gave me documents that I had passed registration, directions to courses and directions to the dormitory where I would live. It turned out that the city was not where I wanted, but completely different. 400 km from the city where I wanted to live. Well, here I was powerless, so after thanking for everything, I retired to my room in the camp.

Final stage

The next day I visited the Job Center where they filled out a form for me and gave it to me so that I could give it to my place of residence. Then, going to the commandant, I gave my documents and said that I was leaving, they asked me to wait, after 30 minutes they called me and showed me a train ticket and said that they would give it to me tomorrow. They gave me 110 euros, partial compensation for my expenses for coming to Germany. After spending the night in the camp, at 7 am I came to the commandant and gave me the keys and in return I received a train ticket and a bunch of other papers that were useful in the city where I lived.

This is approximately the stage all late migrants go through in the camp in Friedland. In the following articles I will talk about adaptation in the city, the first steps that will undoubtedly be useful to you. And I'll give you some practical advice.

"Two questions for the camera?" - a DW correspondent addresses a group of people. "No, no, no. No way!" - they answer. Russian-speaking residents of the last camp in Germany for ethnic Germans - the so-called late migrants, located on the border of the federal states of Lower Saxony and Hesse, unanimously refuse to give video interviews. They are afraid.

Some say that they are afraid of troubles for relatives in Russia, others do not want their friends to find out that they have moved to Germany in the first place, and others make excuses by saying that, “Mom doesn’t know that I smoke.” It takes an hour to convince someone to film.

Step in new life

Although in reality there is nothing to be afraid of. Those who found themselves here in Friedland have already taken a decisive step into a new life. The camp for refugees and late settlers is considered the “gateway to Germany” - today all Russian Germans returning to their historical homeland pass through it. Over the past five years, their number has been growing steadily.

Spending a few days here immediately after arriving in Germany, they undergo a medical examination in neighboring Göttingen, receive documents and find out their destination - the federal state in which they will start a new life.

"Where?" - this question is greeted by everyone who leaves the officials in the waiting room on the second floor in the building of the local branch of the Federal Administrative Department, located right on the camp grounds. "Thuringia!" - someone answers, and a sigh of sympathy is heard throughout the hall. Because Thuringia is the former GDR, this is not considered very good. But the southern or western lands- Bavaria or North Rhine- Westphalia is better.

“Before, old people left, now young people are fleeing”

R.'s family also wants to go to Bavaria, to Munich. Parents are retired and their daughter is a doctor who taught at a medical institute in her homeland. “You know what kind of science we have - it’s none,” says the mother. “Before, old people left for Germany, now young people are fleeing.” The daughter is silent and sighs.

The father says that his work public organization, which dealt with German-Russian relations, became impossible due to the law on “foreign agents”. “So, maybe you’ll give an interview to a media company that almost ended up on the list of ‘foreign agents’?” - asks a DW correspondent. Everyone is laughing. “No, under no circumstances. There is no need for any interviews,” comes the answer.

The wall in the waiting room is decorated from floor to ceiling with children's drawings. The sun, the rainbow, the names of the cities from which its new inhabitants came to Germany.

Nearby, the Trudnov family - parents and two twin sons - are waiting for their appointment with an official. They arrived in Germany from Kaliningrad literally the day before yesterday. And this family can be considered typical representatives of the last wave of emigration of ethnic Germans from Russia - almost all of their relatives have already moved to Germany. In the spring of 2016, they also decided to move. “We have been visiting relatives every year since 2002,” says Larisa Trudova. “We really like it in Germany.”

From the German bureaucratic machine they have the most best impressions: “Everything is done quickly, the queues look large, but they move quickly. And the children did not have time to get tired.” The Trudovs hope that their children will receive a good education in Germany and will find employment in the field of German-Russian relations. Which, according to the spouses, will get better sooner or later.

Moving to Germany without culture shock

Camp director Heinrich Hörnschemeyer has been working here since the summer of 1991. Since 2000, the point in Friedland has become the only one in all of Germany that accepts and distributes federal states ethnic Germans from the countries of the former USSR, primarily from Russia and Kazakhstan. The director says the demographic composition of Russian Germans has changed greatly in recent years. During the main wave of repatriation in the early 1990s, families of up to 20 people, including representatives of several generations of ethnic Germans, came to Germany. For most of them, this was their first visit to Germany, and “they could be seen a mile away” - by their traditional costumes. “In those days, young people didn’t wear jeans,” he recalls with a smile.

The latest wave of immigrants includes people who have relatives in Germany and clear ideas about what awaits them in the country and what they want. Camp guests do not smoke where it is not permitted and show up for appointments with officials on time, Hoernschemeyer said.

“They are much better prepared, they don’t have any culture shock,” notes Hörnschemeyer. “And this is noticeable if only because in recent years the country has stopped talking about the problems of integrating late migrants." The history of the mass resettlement of Russian Germans to Germany, according to him, is a success story.

"People know what awaits them"

"Moving to Germany can no longer be compared to jumping into cold water, as it was in the 1990s. People know what awaits them," agrees Joachim Mrugalla, who runs the local branch of the Federal Office of Administration.

He explains the increase in the number of immigrants from the former USSR observed over the past five years simply. Since 2013, it has been operating in Germany new law, which softens the entry conditions for families of ethnic Germans.

If previously moving was possible once and for the whole family at once, now relatives remaining in Russia can reunite with those who have already moved to Germany. Moreover, it is reduced for them the language barrier- mandatory test German language can be retaken several times. Everyone uses innovations more people, so the number of migrants is growing.

Context

The camp in Friedland has a capacity of 800 people. About a third of them are reserved for late migrants, the rest for refugees and other categories of migrants. Accommodation and food here are free. The migrants spend no more than a week in this place before scattering throughout the country.

Just over 7,000 people passed through Friedland last year. This is almost a fivefold increase compared to 2013. But this is nothing compared to the millions of people who arrived here in the 1990s.

“Back then ten people could spend the night in one room - and no one was indignant,” recalls camp director Heinrich Hörnschemeyer with a smile.