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“Why It’s Different?”: Hierarchies of (Non-) Belonging in German Refugee Categorizations

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  • Frank, Emily

Abstract

Migrants’ perceptions of belonging are shaped by the social policies with which they are received by the state. In Germany, policies grant refugees different levels of labor market access according to legal status, a hierarchical system also referred to as differential inclusion. This study compares perceptions and experiences of these labor market policies and discourses among refugees with four legal statuses. Refugees with the most precarious legal status are largely barred from the labor market, leading them to experience severe exclusion and pushing them into liminal spaces of existence. While recognized refugees may be able to work, racialized discourses about their deservingness create conditional and limited senses of belonging..Finally, refugees often themselves observe these hierarchies, reinforcing feelings of exclusion. Results demonstrate how the hierarchies present in policies create a stratified system of differential non-belonging. Overall, the article sheds light on how differential inclusion of refugees also results in hierarchized experiences of differential (non-)belonging.

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  • Frank, Emily, 2025. "“Why It’s Different?”: Hierarchies of (Non-) Belonging in German Refugee Categorizations," EconStor Open Access Articles and Book Chapters, ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics, issue Latest Ar, pages 1-16.
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:espost:323981
    DOI: 10.1080/15562948.2025.2529497
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Nihad El-Kayed & Ulrike Hamann, 2018. "Refugees’ Access to Housing and Residency in German Cities: Internal Border Regimes and Their Local Variations," Social Inclusion, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(1), pages 135-146.
    2. repec:sae:mrxval:v:59:y:2025:i:2:p:811-824 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Valeria Lazarenko, 2024. "“Let the State Decide It All for Me”: The Role of Migration and Integration Policy in the Decision-Making of Ukrainian Refugee Women in Germany," Journal of International Migration and Integration, Springer, vol. 25(3), pages 1571-1591, September.
    4. Nihad El-Kayed & Ulrike Hamann, 2018. "Refugees’ Access to Housing and Residency in German Cities: Internal Border Regimes and Their Local Variations," Social Inclusion, Cogitatio Press, vol. 6(1), pages 135-146.
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