Overview
- On Thursday, May 28, the Oberverwaltungsgericht (OVG) Berlin-Brandenburg overturned a 2023 Verwaltungsgericht Berlin ruling and decided in favour of the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF).
- The case involved a 2004-born Russian who had been granted subsidiary protection by the lower court over fears of being forced into service as a paid 'contract soldier' and sent to fight in Ukraine.
- The OVG found the plaintiff had not shown that it was ‘with notable probability’ he would be compelled into combat or subjected to torture, and said routine one-year basic military service alone does not meet the legal threshold for protection.
- The federal government and BAMF stress that each claim must be decided on its facts and that security and exclusion checks remain part of adjudication; the OVG declined to allow revision but a complaint to the Federal Administrative Court is still possible.
- The ruling deepens a split in German case law, may reduce prospects for blanket protection for Russian men fearing recruitment, and leaves open practical effects on deportations and future test cases at the federal court.