Expert Discussion | Intersectional Perspectives on Gender Equality in German Residency and Immigration Law

Germany is a country of immigration. Yet German immigration law remains rife with unequal power dynamics, discriminatory structures, and exclusions. Gender, origin, and immigration status interact in complex ways and play a decisive role in determining who gains access to rights, security, and social participation—and who does not.

An intersectional perspective on residency status and migration reveals how closely issues of gender justice and integration are intertwined. It makes clear that immigration laws are not neutral, but can perpetuate or exacerbate social inequalities.

Following opening remarks by Franziska Rauchut, Head of the Knowledge, Consulting, and Innovation Division at the Federal Foundation for Gender Equality, Pauline Hachenberg, Research Associate in the Knowledge, Consulting, and Innovation Division, will provide an overview of the interconnection between the categories of “gender” and “migration” based on her scholarly text “Gender, Migration, and Barriers to Access.”

Following this, Dr. David Schiefer, a research associate in the Integration Department at the DeZIM Institute, will discuss—based on the publication “Family Care Across Borders”—how family care across national borders is also complicated by legal hurdles.

In addition, Dr. Nora Ratzmann, also a research associate in the Integration Department at the DeZIM Institute, will present her research on the living conditions of refugee women from Ukraine and the impact on their prospects for remaining in Germany following the so-called Temporary Protection Directive (Temporary Protection Directive). The starting point here is the paper “Implementing the Temporary Protection Directive in Germany: de jure liberal, de facto selective?”.

Following this, Prof. Magdalena Nowicka, Head of the Integration Department at the DeZIM Institute, Dr. Delal Atmaca, member of the Advisory Board of the Federal Foundation for Gender Equality and Executive Director and co-founder of the umbrella organization of migrant women’s organizations (DaMigra e.V.), and Franziska Rauchut will engage in a fishbowl discussion with participants on what a migration law framework that enables true equality might look like.

The event will be moderated by Pauline Ahlhaus, Research Associate in the Knowledge, Consulting, and Innovation Division of the Federal Foundation for Gender Equality.