Official: Germany grants 6,500 visas to Syrians, Turks affected by quake

Germany issued 6,567 Schengen visas to earthquake victims in Syria and Turkiye by the end of last March, a Foreign Ministry official said.

The German Press Agency quoted a spokesman for the German Foreign Ministry as saying that the number of national visas issued within the framework of the family reunification procedure has reached 1,085.

He explained that Turkish citizens who have relatives in Germany have primarily benefited from the simplified procedure for issuing visas, while Syrians have benefited from national visas for permanent residence in Germany.

After the earthquake that hit Syria and Turkiye in early February, the German government announced a simplified procedure for issuing visas to earthquake victims in the two countries, to allow them to stay temporarily with their relatives in Germany.

However, critics said although Berlin had promised that the procedure would be devoid of bureaucratic requirements, it required the submission of a valid passport and a biometric image, which is hard to provide in light of the devastation caused by the quake.

On 6 February, Syria and Turkiye were hit by a massive 7.8 earthquake, followed by a dozen aftershocks which led to the death and injury of tens of thousands of people, in addition to causing massive destruction to homes, facilities and infrastructure.

READ: Germany offers temporary visas to Syrians, Turks affected by earthquake