According to the German Federal Statistical Office, 2.9 million people in Germany had a Turkish migration background in 2022. Thus, Turkey represents one of the most important countries of origin for migrants in Germany. In the last decade, however, Turkey has also become an important transit and destination country for migrants itself. Since 2011, when war broke out in Syria, more than 3.7 million Syrians have sought refuge in Turkey. Starting in 2014, Turkey's initial open-door immigration policy increasingly gave way to restrictive measures with the goal to limit migration from Syria. Following a German initiative, the European Union (EU) and the Turkish government agreed on a migration agreement in 2016. The EU-Turkey agreement aimed at limiting irregular migration to the EU and, in turn, improving the humanitarian conditions for refugees in Turkey by providing 6 billion Euros in aid.
IAB Research Report 18/2024: Six years after the EU-Turkey Agreement: A quantitative assessment of the living conditions of Syrians in Turkey