Overview
- About 2,600 customs staff questioned more than 5,200 workers in a nationwide check of hotels and gastronomy on 19 September.
- Officials initiated 370 criminal and 800 administrative proceedings on site, including roughly 200 criminal cases for staying without a residence permit.
- Customs flagged around 2,200 additional suspected breaches for deeper review covering undeclared work, foreign employment and possible minimum wage shortfalls.
- Local results illustrate the scope: Frankfurt found 49 failures to make required immediate social-insurance registrations at 12 businesses, while Duisburg, Essen and Kreis Wesel recorded 70 violations including eight suspected illegal stays and five cases of withheld wages.
- Follow-up steps include matching worker statements with payroll and financial records, referring individuals without permits to immigration authorities and recovering outstanding claims, with the finance minister publicly backing the crackdown.