The Hessian District Council supports the planned introduction of a payment card for refugees. This is a “useful instrument,” explained President Wolfgang Schuster (SPD) when asked by the dpa in Wiesbaden. The payment card is currently being discussed in the district assembly committees. The association is already in close coordination with the state to clarify the possibilities for introducing a uniform nationwide map, added Schuster, district administrator of the Lahn-Dill district.
With the nationwide payment card, asylum seekers will in future receive part of the state benefits as credit and no more as cash. Last week, 14 of 16 federal states agreed on a joint procurement process. Among other things, the card is intended to prevent refugees from transferring money to their family or friends abroad.
The Hessian Association of Cities declared that it would only be able to position itself after a presidium meeting on March 7th. So far it is unclear whether the cities’ demands regarding costs and practicality will be met. The process must be clear and understandable, cost-neutral, manageable and unbureaucratic for everyone involved, i.e. social and immigration authorities as well as those entitled to benefits, it said.
