A rising tide of Chinese women is quietly entering Germany's legitimate sex industry, not as trafficking victims but as self-employed workers pursuing better pay. A joint report issued by Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office and Federal Police on July 28 estimated that most are entering the country with falsified EU residence permits or along smuggling channels working in a legitimate occupation but above immigration law.
Unlike the conventional cases of human trafficking by coercion or debt bondage, the women in these cases supposedly make an enlightened decision to enter the business. Police did not have statistics but characterized it as an "emerging trend," the first to depart from the well-known patterns of exploitation by Asian women in international sex chains.
The majority of women allegedly use forged documents from other EU states, which allow them to travel across the region without obstacles. Others, who lack these documents, are smuggled through the Balkans hidden in vans by local gangs, as reported by Nikkei Asia.
Once in Germany, they often work in “appointment apartments” private flats functioning as discreet brothels without overt signage. Typically, two or three women share a unit, with the operators providing premises, online advertising, and taking a 50 percent cut of earnings. Police say these workers retain considerable control over their schedules and income, making it harder to prove trafficking charges.
Though prostitution is legal in Germany, employment without necessary permits makes these women susceptible to deportation, loss of employment, and entry bans. Most promote themselves on the internet in Mandarin, serving not only Chinese customers but also older German men, who are reported to cherish them for their perceived respect for elders.
Stephanie Klee of the association of brothel managers BSD attested to a noticeable increase in commercials for women from Hong Kong and the mainland China. According to her, the appeal is Germany's prosperity, the possibility of making money discreetly, and avoiding letting families at home know about their actual job by lying and telling them that they worked in the hotel or healthcare business.
Industry tensions have led to police raids, stimulated in part by licensed brothel complaints. Klee has his doubts about their efficacy, pointing out that apartments quickly reopen, sometimes with the same employees if they are not caught. Those who are apprehended without proper visas can expect confiscation of income and deportation.
The trend attracted further notice after the 2023 raid on the Pascha brothel in Cologne, the largest in Europe, which was acquired by a Chinese investor in 2021. Authorities claimed that it was being utilized to obtain false residence permits for wealthy Omani nationals and Chinese. Over 1,000 officers participated in the raid, and the brothel is currently run by Germans.
For German officials, this transition from coerced exploitation to voluntary but illicit involvement establishes a legal and moral gray area. For the women, it is a gamble calculated: the promise of economic possibility measured against the possibility of losing all at the hands of immigration authorities.
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