AfD's Maximilian Krah Says Mass Deportations Are Unrealistic but Wants to Revoke Temporary Residence Permits

German far-right lawmaker Maximilian Krah has said his Alternative for Germany (AfD) party intends to revoke temporary residence permits on a large scale, while acknowledging that forcibly removing more than a million people would be difficult in a liberal democracy.

“Yes, we intend to revoke temporary residence permits on a large scale,” Krah said.

“But if you believe that you can expel more than a million people against their will in a liberal state, that has not happened since the end of the war.”

The AfD politician, who represents Saxony in Germany's Bundestag, also argued that his party's restrictive immigration policies could attract voters from established immigrant communities, particularly Germans of Turkish origin.

“Immigration policy is precisely an argument for migrant voters to vote for us,” he said.

Krah suggested that opposition to Syrian immigration was widespread among Turkish residents in Germany.

“I have not met a single Turk in Germany who wants Syrians here,” he said. “As a rule, they are much tougher on this issue than we are.”

His comments reflect an effort to attract immigrant voters who favor tighter border controls and restrictions on newer arrivals, despite the AfD's longstanding opposition to immigration.

Krah has previously argued that German citizenship must be respected regardless of ethnic background, distancing himself from proposals that could extend mass deportations to naturalized citizens.

The distinction has become increasingly important within the AfD, where competing interpretations of *remigration* have fueled disagreements over how far the party's immigration policies should go.

In October, the AfD parliamentary group proposed withdrawing protection status from Syrian refugees on a broad scale and resuming forced returns of those legally required to leave Germany.

Under German law, however, withdrawing refugee protection does not automatically result in deportation. Authorities must assess individual circumstances, including whether a person qualifies for another residence permit.