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Immigration Act

The Immigration Act of 2005 (Zuwanderungsgesetz – ZuWG) is reform of Germany’s migration and integration policy as well as the residence regulations. The Immigration Act includes several articles, which included two newly created laws, with the Residence Act as article 1 and the EU Freedom of Movement Act as article 2. The Immigration Act further included changes in pre-existing laws such as the Asylum Act, Asylum Benefit Act, Citizenship Act and the Federal Expellee Law. The Residence Act does not apply to EU citizens. The changes in the Residence Act led to only two types of residence titles: the limited residence permit (Aufenthaltserlaubnis) and the unlimited settlement permit (Niederlassungserlaubnis). The EU Freedom of Movement Act regulates the freedom of movement of EU citizens and replaces the Residence Act/EEC for EU citizens. The Immigration Act further declared promotion of integration a statutory task and introduced immigrants’ legal right to participate in integration classes.