A small but growing number of Chinese people are fleeing home, with their sights set on Germany thanks to its reputation as a safe haven for refugees

Ling*, 42, arrived in Germany with his 10-year-old daughter, Feifei* in late 2024. Their journey from Jiangsu province in eastern China to the small town of Schöppenstedt on the outskirts of Hanover took more than three months and cost thousands of pounds in payments to people smugglers and plane tickets. Starting in August, it culminated with a dangerous wintry trek across the Balkan mountains from Bosnia into the European Union – first Croatia, then Slovenia, Italy and, finally, Germany.

Ling is one of the hundreds of Chinese people who claimed asylum in Germany in 2024.