Emigration from Germany – What Drives People Away

Wandering from afar. Wandering into the distance. People move away and towards. In our society, the focus is primarily on wandering towards. Little is said about going away. Yet throughout German history, there has always been both: people who wanted to go towards and others who wanted to leave. What follows concerns those people who voluntarily, not out of dire necessity, move to another country. A country which, through a magical spell, captivates the emigrants and draws them into the distance with a sense of longing.
Perhaps these people never truly felt at home where they were born and grew up. Perhaps they always felt a piece of their heart was missing. Perhaps there was always an seemingly insatiable longing for something indescribable within them. An incomplete, apparently unsolvable puzzle. And then the decisive moment happens: these people arrive, either quite deliberately or completely unexpectedly, at a place that should actually be foreign to them and feel more at home than ever before. As if by a miracle, they have found the missing puzzle piece. They are not entirely certain whether it will fit forever, but when is there ever absolute certainty? So they dare. At least some do. Most do not have the courage, but a few brave souls venture it. Those who do venture it leave everything behind, possessions and loved ones, and go away. The distance draws them in magnetically.

And then they are there. On the spot. Everything new, somehow familiar and yet foreign. Many things turn out differently than hoped, some are disappointed, others flourish fully and completely, experience their "American Dream" but in a very individual way. They dared to turn their dream into their reality. They did not give up on the urge, the call of their heart, but they gave in to it. And now they stand here. The familiar lies in their rear-view mirror. They let their gaze wander and be enchanted. Their personal wonderland. Opportunities and difficulties await them there. Not all of them find their happiness now, some even break down. Because nothing is as it first seems and sometimes appearances deceive and gloss over the truth behind the façade. Even though it is often forgotten: the romantic, dreamy notion and reality are never congruent. German history shows that there have always been periods in which particularly many people left the country – often, unfortunately, less voluntarily and more in a flight-like manner.
Altogether, many people leave Germany every year nowadays. In 2016, with 1,365,000 people leaving, it was the highest figure of the last 30 years. The trend of leaving is rising. In 1991, just 596,000 people emigrated. In 2019 it was 1,231,500 and in 2020 just under 966,500. This year, by the end of September, already one million people have left Germany. It should be noted that most of these people leaving do not hold German citizenship. The over one million people leaving every year are probably not even mostly voluntary emigrants. Some of these people without German citizenship were only here very briefly, some for their entire lives. Many people are also at home here without this citizenship, which is why there are no true "emigration figures" of people who left voluntarily. Since no statistics could be found that take these data into account, in the following, for simplicity's sake, only the emigration of German citizens will be considered. As far as these are concerned, more people leave the country every year than return. This difference is called "migration balance". Since 2010 it has been consistently negative in Germany. For example, in 2019 it was −63,660.
According to statistics, the most popular destination country for German emigrants in 2020 was clearly Switzerland. Austria is in second place and the USA is clearly behind in third place. Over the last 10 years, from 2009 to 2019, the first place was the same, but places 2 and 3 were relatively closely swapped. Other countries that are popular with German emigrants are, according to that statistic, mainly nearby European countries such as the United Kingdom, Spain, Poland, France and Turkey. More distant countries such as Australia and Canada are only in 10th and 11th place. Apparently, most German emigrants are not drawn to the far, completely foreign distance.
The study "German Emigration and Remigration Panel" deals with the motives and profile of German emigrants. Those surveyed here emigrated in 2017/2018 or returned to Germany. German emigrants can thus be roughly sketched as follows: these are particularly younger people, as the proportion of 25 to 39-year-olds is as much as 63 per cent. Furthermore, German emigrants apparently have above-average qualifications. Three out of four people leaving have an academic degree.
Of course, there are some people who leave the country once and never return. Nevertheless, two-thirds of those who relocate abroad plan their stay to be time-limited from the outset, and just as two out of three German emigrants return after some time. The "Federal Office for Migration and Refugees" writes on this subject that there are many temporary forms of migration, such as among students or labour emigrants.
There are many different, very individual reasons for emigrating, but some aspects occur particularly frequently. High on the list are job offers abroad, family reunification or marriage, dissatisfaction with the current country, whether due to high tax rates, disappointment with politics, anger about bureaucracy, concern about poverty in old age, or simply the lack of prospects in and for this country. Furthermore, wanderlust is a major point, driven by a longing for the foreign and change, a break from the familiar. As the last frequently occurring reason, one might mention health, which particularly draws older people to countries with milder climates.
In an article in the magazine "Academics", which belongs to the ZEIT publishing group, it is about the psychological perspective of emigration. It describes how emigration can be successful. Central to this are the aspects of preparation, organisation and planning. This requires a lot of time, effort and perseverance, which is why great willingness and motivation are also necessary. On the question of what draws people to distant places, Academics provides a clear answer: primarily it is about the "longing for a new beginning in a foreign land". This longing is linked with a desire for adventure and the wish to improve one's own living conditions.
Academics describes emigration as a momentous decision, which is why one should also prepare psychologically for the daring step. Everything is turned upside down, one separates from one's loved ones and loses at least temporarily one's sociocultural competence. On the ground in the destination country, everything is different and one must adapt in a certain way, adjust to the new culture and living situation and the associated difficulties in order to escape the looming existential crisis. The transition does not happen in one fell swoop; it is a long and hard process. Much has to be relearned. Euphoria and uncertainty lie directly next to each other. This uncertainty and the feeling of loss of control take their toll on the soul. One must also not forget the risk of disappointment and withdrawal and identity crisis. Therefore, it is important that emigrants plan their step realistically and critically. A new place does not make a person into a new being. In order not to lose oneself, one should maintain selected habits even in a foreign land. These provide stability, which is why Academics also advises against breaking off contact in the country of emigration.
Perhaps the urge to emigrate has to do with homelessness. Perhaps people are afraid of arrival. Afraid of too much everyday life, of normality. But in the end, every person has their own reasons for emigrating. And it is not necessarily as voluntary as it might seem at first glance. Perhaps the people have fled. It does not have to be something as obvious as war. It can also be a struggle within the person or in their personal environment. Leaving. Perhaps you yourself have once thought about leaving everything behind, all the problems, all that you would like to undo and starting afresh. Beginning at zero. You no longer have to justify or defend yourself. Living a second chance in life. But in the end, it does nothing to blindly chase an unrealistic dream. Emigration can certainly be worthwhile and help people find their happiness, but it is important to think carefully and plan realistically. In the end, one must never forget that every person needs different conditions to be able to lead a happy life. As Goethe once said, a person needs both wings and roots. Every being finds its wings differently and elsewhere.