Overview

• During EU-wide control days from September 22 to 28, the Hauptzollamt Magdeburg’s Finanzkontrolle Schwarzarbeit inspected 17 sites in Magdeburg, Halle, Wittenberg, Wernigerode and the Altmark, interviewing 89 workers with 69 officers.
• Those checks triggered 10 criminal cases and 10 administrative proceedings, chiefly linked to residency-law violations, with follow-up audits planned to match statements against payroll and financial records.
• In a separate nationwide operation on September 19, 73 customs officers in Saxony-Anhalt questioned 132 people at 35 businesses in the hospitality sector, opening 11 criminal investigations and 13 administrative offence proceedings.
• Authorities identified 48 suspected cases requiring deeper inquiry, including signs of withheld social-security contributions and possible misuse of public benefits.
• The stepped-up enforcement targets illegal employment and wage violations across high-risk sectors under Germany’s €12.82 hourly minimum wage.