Overview
- Work at Volkstedt is underway, with the 30-place deportation facility slated for completion by the end of 2026 and start-up in the second half of 2027, and the prison expansion scheduled for handover in May 2028.
- The site’s capacity will rise from 191 to 285 prison places through two new housing units, alongside a separate building for deportation custody.
- The state estimates total spending at about €275 million, and media reports put the deportation facility’s build cost at €37.4 million (around €1.24 million per place) with roughly €9 million in annual operating costs.
- Interior Minister Tamara Zieschang cites more than 4,000 people obliged to leave Saxony-Anhalt and frequent failed removals as the rationale for creating designated custody.
- A Bundesrat bid to ease EU separation rules for deportation custody failed to gain committee backing, and a decision on a separate new-prison site between Halle and Weißenfels is due in September, with the Volkstedt design allowing later conversion of the deportation unit into 30 regular places and shared services with the adjacent JVA.