Germany
The use of DNA analysis in the context of immigration policies in Germany can be traced back to the end of the 1990s. As long ago as 1998, DNA tests for the purposes of family reunions were brought to the attention of the Bundestag (German parliament) (Deutscher Bundestag 1998).
The legal situation
In Germany, the Zuwanderungsgesetz (Immigration Act) regulates different aspects of immigration, such as conditions of residence and prerequisites for family reunification. It establishes a nuclear family model, meaning that the right of family reunification is legally recognised only for spouses over 18 years and under-age children. Family members who apply for family reunification have to prove their family status by birth and/or marriage certificates. It seems to be a common practice that in cases where no legal documents are provided, the use of a DNA test is offered to the applicants instead. Moreover, the German foreign ministry has announced a list of over 40 countries whose documents are not acknowledged by German embassies. Immigrants from these countries will find it difficult to prove family relations. To obtain permission to reunite with family members, they might also resort to DNA analysis.
While they seem to be a more or less common institutional practice, until today these proofs of kinship by DNA analysis have been taking place without any form of legal regulation. In 2008, the draft of the Gendiagnostikgesetz (Act of Genetic Diagnostics) first focused on DNA analysis in the context of immigration. However, for the use of genetic data in the context of family reunification important legal guarantees are inoperative. For example, immigrants cannot demand that their genetic data be destroyed, and their data might be used for criminal prosecution purposes.
The political and public debate
The German debate on DNA analysis in immigration processes takes its lead from the proposal for a new immigration law in France in 2007. According to media reports, immigrant families are pressurised to agree to DNA analysis to obtain their visa. Pro Asyl, German NGO supporting asylum seekers, together with the watchdog organisation Gen ethisches Netzwerk and the advocacy group Deutscher Anwaltsverein stressed that families often have to undergo DNA analysis in order to reunite, even if they have objections to the procedure. It has also been pointed out that the entire financial burden of the test falls on the immigrant families; with costs of up to 500 euros, tests cannot be afforded easily by all families.
Furthermore, critical attention has been drawn to the fact that the draft of the Act of Genetic Diagnostics implements a dual standard, according a special status to immigrants by refusing them the right to informational self-determination. As a result of this campaign, DNA analysis in the context of immigration has become a hot topic in public debates with a lot of media coverage in Germany.
