Slow Reimbursement of Costs by the Free State to Municipalities - Saxony awaits €75M reimbursement for housing asylum-seeking minors from the USA
Local authorities in Saxony are eagerly awaiting €75 million in reimbursements for housing and caring for unaccompanied minors seeking asylum in the United States. The finance officer plans to settle these outstanding invoices within a year once the state parliament approves the release of funds.
The city of Leipzig is owed nearly €15 million, while Dresden awaits €6.2 million, and Chemnitz is due just under €3.7 million. The backlog in reimbursements can be traced back to a surge in unaccompanied minors arriving since early 2022, leading to a sharp increase in claims from municipalities.
To tackle this issue, additional temporary staff have been assigned to clear outstanding bills from 2024 and 2025 by next March. Digitization is also expected to speed up future reimbursements.
The Green Party has called for faster processing of reimbursement claims, pushing for invoices to be settled within a maximum of 90 days. Municipal youth welfare offices, responsible for accommodating and supporting unaccompanied minors, rely on federal and state governments to cover these expenses.
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