According to a survey conducted by the leading German private economic institute IW, nearly a quarter of respondents (23.5%) have recently 'seriously considered leaving Germany for an extended period or permanently.' Among residents under 40, the number dreaming of emigration reaches 35.4%, among university graduates – 28.7%. Emigration is increasingly turning from a temporary trip abroad into a parting with the homeland: 47% of surveyed emigrants stated that under no circumstances do they intend to return.
The main reasons why Germans leave Germany are the impossibility of self-fulfillment (80.6% of surveyed emigrants), hypertrophied German bureaucracy (66.3%), disbelief in Germany's prospects (65.3%), and excessively high taxes (64.3%).
The tax burden imposed by the German state on its citizens is indeed exorbitantly high and continues to grow. According to the German Taxpayers' Union, in 2006 citizens gave the state 51% of their income in direct and indirect taxes, and in 2007 the tax share rose to 53%. And this despite the fact that the average tax burden in developed countries is 37.5%.
According to opinion polls, 48% of Germans approve of their fellow citizens who try to hide taxes from the state. And among young people under 29, the share of those who sympathize with tax evaders is as high as 59%. It is not surprising that the desire to escape from the excessive tax burden forces Germans to move to Austria or German-speaking regions of Switzerland. Those who move there are mainly established and wealthy people, who thus do not leave the German linguistic and cultural space and at the same time significantly improve their living conditions.
If the main reason for migration is the desire for self-fulfillment, then Germans choose Anglo-Saxon countries – the USA, Great Britain, Canada, and Australia. These are usually young and educated people, counting on a faster career and high salaries. Thus, according to the German Medical Association, about 19 thousand qualified medical professionals have left Germany to work abroad. These specialists are primarily in demand in clinics in Great Britain.
Another group of emigrants is ethnic minorities. Despite all official statements about equal opportunities, the German social system leaves virtually no chance for non-German citizens to rise on the social ladder. For example, out of 82 million residents of the country, 2.5 million people have Turkish origin, but in the Bundestag there are only two out of 612 deputies. Thus, in parliament, the share of Turkish representation is understated many times over. Among the ministers of the federal German government, exclusively ethnic Germans are represented – there are no ethnic Turks, no ethnic German resettlers from Eastern Europe, and no Jews. The situation is similar in the governments of the federal states. It is not surprising that well-educated German citizens from among ethnic minorities increasingly decide to leave the country where their origin does not allow them to rise above a certain level.
Sergey Sumlenny.
