One state in Germany has decided to refine its crime statistics, no longer recording dual nationals solely as German offenders. This could lead to authorities having a clearer picture regarding migrant crime.

A significant change is coming to crime reporting in Germany’s most populous state, North Rhine-Westphalia, after the interior minister ordered that offenders with multiple citizenships should have all their nationalities recorded in crime statistics. Migrant crime can no longer be downplayed.

Germans and authorities could gain a more accurate picture of the scale of migrant crime (Photo: AFP)

Across Germany, dual nationals are currently recorded only as Germans, with their other citizenships not disclosed. This has significantly distorted crime reporting statistics. Now Herbert Reul, interior minister and a member of the Christian Democrats (CDU), is the first interior minister to include these nationalities in the statistics.

“If we do not record all nationalities, we are operating in the dark. If we want to see reality, we must measure it,” said Mr. Reul.

“Only then can we call things by their proper name and enable our police to identify dangers early and fight crime effectively. Security can only be guaranteed through transparency. When we record multiple nationalities, we create transparency – thereby strengthening our police in the fight against crime,”

– he added.

Als erstes Bundesland nennt Nordrhein-Westfalen in der Kriminalitätsstatistik jetzt alle Nationalitäten von Straftätern mit mehreren Pässen. Schon die erste Erhebung zeigt: Es sind enorm viele. Die traditionellen linken Medien toben.https://t.co/w7hXjK67b8

— Tichys Einblick (@TichysEinblick) August 28, 2025

Including foreign nationals who also hold German passports is expected to provide a more realistic and detailed picture of who commits crimes, writes the RMX News portal.

A clearer picture of migrant crime is emerging

In 2023, 35.6 per cent of all suspects were non-German, while they made up 16.1 per cent of the population. However, one-sixth of suspects with German citizenship were also registered with another nationality, and together they committed 49,825 offences. The new data shows that the most common dual nationalities are German–Turkish (10,307), German–Polish (6,652), German–Russian (3,484), German–Moroccan (3,125) and German–Syrian (2,185).

North Rhine-Westphalia’s interior ministry has justified the decision by noting that multiple citizenships carry a risk of evading the police. Furthermore, some suspects with multiple identities have caused problems for authorities during the data collection and identification process.

The data may also provide a clearer picture of how certain groups are able to integrate. It clearly shows that some foreign nationals are significantly overrepresented in the national crime statistics. Previously, V4NA also highlighted that

in Germany there are six convicted individuals per 1,000 Germans, but 21 per 1,000 foreigners.

It is important to note that Mr. Reul’s new law does not change crime reporting at the federal level. Due to federal regulations, North Rhine-Westphalia can only transmit data on dual nationals with German citizenship to federal authorities. Therefore, the state can only release its own data on suspects with multiple citizenships, but this does not affect federal statistics.

If every German state reported on crimes committed by dual nationals, potentially hundreds of thousands of offences by dual citizens could be revealed nationwide, dramatically altering the perception of national statistics. Foreigners already account for nearly 60 per cent of violent and serious crimes in Germany, meaning the figure would be much higher if dual nationals were included.

Vast majority of sexual assaults are committed by migrants

Data from 2024 shows that 65 per cent of all sexual offences were committed by foreigners, while German citizens accounted for 35 per cent of such crimes in North Rhine-Westphalia. However, the migration background of German suspects was not disclosed at the time.

Statistics from the Police Crime Statistical Office (PKS) were presented at the request of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in parliament.

According to the data, in 2024 there were 119 sexual offences in outdoor and indoor swimming pools. Of the suspects known to the police, 42 were German citizens, while 76 were foreign, including two of unknown nationality. Among the foreign suspects, 22 were Afghan, 12 Syrian, eight Turkish, six Bulgarian and six Iraqi. Other nationalities included Albanians, Algerians and Ukrainians, though they represented a smaller proportion of suspects.

However, due to recent changes in how nationality is reported in North Rhine-Westphalia, it was revealed that nine of the German suspects also hold another passport. This represents 21.4 per cent of all German suspects.

🇩🇪 „I was at the outdoor pool in Zeitz (Germany) yesterday. What can I say?”

„The obvious migrant guests there, who are perhaps from Syria, Afghanistan or whatever, were always romping around in the children’s pools. The men were lying around in the children’s pools, sitting on… pic.twitter.com/Muih5UqhQv

— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) July 8, 2025

Calls grow to disclose offenders’ nationalities elsewhere

As V4NA highlighted in a previous article, there are increasing calls to publish the nationality and status of offenders in the United Kingdom. A project by The Telegraph, which aimed to produce a “first ranking of crime by nationality,” analysed the number of prisoners according to the passports they hold, and compared this with 2021 census data to illustrate the likelihood of different ethnic groups committing crimes in the UK.

The analysis found that for every 10,000 migrants living in the UK, there were 18.2 prisoners, compared with 14 per 10,000 British citizens, meaning that foreigners are 27 per cent more likely to be in prison.

Based on the findings, some have suggested that the government reform immigration policy to limit migrants from countries whose populations are more likely to commit crimes.

Robert Jenrick, the Conservative leadership candidate and former immigration minister, said:

“This analysis confirms what the public has long suspected: certain nationalities are more likely to commit serious crimes than others. It again highlights the need for a much stricter immigration system, including tighter security checks on nationalities associated with criminality in the UK.”

The project also doubled calls for the UK government to publish comprehensive statistics on migrants and crime. The initiative is led by Conservative MP Neil O’Brien, who previously proposed legislation requiring the government to disclose the asylum and visa status, as well as the nationality, of every convicted criminal from the previous year.

“It is shameful that the government refuses to make this information public. It should be accessible to allow for an informed debate,”

– he said.