Germany is driving away its high achievers:
More and more young and well-qualified Germans are considering emigration. They criticize high workloads, bureaucracy ...
focus.de/politik/deutschland/deutschland-vergrault-seine-leistungstraeger_8f11489d-1f9f-41b7-8b6c-740fa3e769e9.html
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21% of Young Germans Plan to EmigrateTwenty-one percent of young Germans have concrete plans to leave; 269,986 Germans left the country in 2024.
- Among 14- to 29-year-olds, 21% concretely plan to leave; 41% can generally imagine doing so.
- Net migration among German nationals was minus 81,000 in 2024 and minus 97,000 in 2025.
- According to the article, 75% of emigrants hold university degrees and therefore largely belong to the highly qualified.
- An Ipsos MORI poll commissioned by the author across 13 countries suggests strong social envy in Germany; only France ranked higher.
Ironically, those who inwardly resign are not a character flaw in these people. It is the reckoning for a country that has long believed it could milk performance, lecture about freedom, and distrust success, without ever facing a bill.— Alexander Steffen (FDP politician) quoted in the Focus article about his critique of Germany's state; excerpt from his book Goodbye Deutschland
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act of leaving one's country or region with the intent to settle permanently or temporarily in another
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Germany is driving away its high achievers: More and more young and well-qualified Germans are considering emigration. They criticize high workloads, bureaucracy ...
focus.de/politik/deutschland/deutschland-vergrault-seine-leistungstraeger_8f11489d-1f9f-41b7-8b6c-740fa3e769e9.html
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Key FactsWhy Many Young Germans Consider Emigrating
Mar 27, 2026 · Reading time: ~45 sec.
Summary created with AI assistance · Source: schwaebische.de
Summary created with AI assistance · Source: schwaebische.de
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