Demographic Profile of Syrians in Germany and Aspects of Integration

Abstract

Germany is the main European destination for refugees from Syria. Being only a small group of about 30,000 people before the outbreak of the civil war, Syrian citizens are now, with almost 700,000, the third largest group of foreigners in Germany. At the end of 2017 the majority of the whole population group was male and on average very young. However, family reunification and the independent immigration of women and children are playing an increasingly important role. The age structure is the reason for numerous challenges in the education and training system as well as the labor market in Germany. The economic situation of Syrian migrants is still difficult, a large proportion of them being at least partially dependent on state transfers. Since the vast majority of Syrian refugees are Muslim, this brings significant changes to the structure of Islam in Germany.