The Bundestag has voted to sharply expand the powers of Germany’s federal police (Bundespolizei). The new Federal Police Act (Bundespolizeigesetz), passed on 10 July 2026, allows real-time facial recognition in specific danger situations, AI-assisted detection of suspicious movements, and suspicion-free identity checks in weapon and knife ban zones. The bill still needs approval from the Bundesrat, Germany’s upper house, after the summer break.
The new Federal Police Act at a glance
- Vote: Passed by the Bundestag on 10 July 2026 with votes from the CDU/CSU and SPD; the Left Party and the Greens voted against it, and the AfD abstained.
- Who’s affected: Germany’s roughly 55,000 federal police officers, whose main rulebook has largely dated from 1994.
- New tools: Real-time facial recognition in acute danger situations, AI-based detection of suspicious movement patterns, suspicion-free checks in knife ban zones, expanded phone surveillance, federal police-initiated deportation detention requests, and drone use plus counter-drone measures.
- Next step: The Bundesrat must still approve the law after the summer break. Previous reform attempts failed there in 2021 and again under the last coalition government.
Facial recognition, but only in emergencies
Under the new law, federal police officers may use automatic real-time facial recognition within their jurisdiction, but only when there is a specific danger situation. The law names examples such as an acute threat to the security of the federal government or a state, or to a person’s life. One scenario cited during the debate: if the parents of an abducted child supply a photo, police could match it in real time against footage from cameras at airports and train stations.
AI to spot dangerous movements, more checks at stations
The law also allows federal police to use video technology combined with artificial intelligence to detect movement patterns that suggest a crime is underway, such as someone raising a fist, drawing a knife, or a person falling onto train tracks. Separately, in designated weapon and knife ban zones — often located at train stations — federal police will be able to carry out identity checks without needing a specific suspicion.
More powers over phones, drones and deportations
To fight extremism and people-smuggling crime, federal police gain new powers for phone surveillance, including source telecommunications surveillance (Quellen-Telekommunikationsüberwachung) — secretly reading communications on a device before it is encrypted. Identifying and locating mobile phone cards and devices will also become easier.
Federal police will also be able to apply directly to a court for deportation detention (Abschiebehaft). This applies to foreign nationals who are required to leave Germany and have no toleration status (Duldung). The aim, according to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, is to stop people who have been stopped by police from being released and then going into hiding.
The law additionally allows officers to fly their own drones for surveillance and reconnaissance, and to counter hostile drones using measures such as electromagnetic pulses, GPS jamming or physical intervention.
Opposition raises legal concerns
The Greens and the Left Party both voted against the bill. Green MP Irene Mihalic said there were legal doubts about the biometric real-time surveillance provisions. Left Party MP Clara Bünger warned the reform would make blanket surveillance the norm. The CDU’s Josef Oster accused the AfD, which abstained, of not having engaged with the details of the bill.
What it means for people living in Germany
If the Bundesrat approves the law after the summer break, internationals should expect more frequent identity checks at train stations and airports, particularly in areas marked as knife or weapon ban zones, where police will no longer need a specific reason to stop someone. Real-time facial recognition is limited by law to acute danger situations rather than routine use. People without a residence permit or toleration status (Duldung) who are required to leave the country face a faster path to deportation detention, since federal police can now request it directly from a court.
- Carry valid ID when travelling through train stations and airports, especially in marked weapon and knife ban zones.
- The law has not yet taken effect — it still needs the Bundesrat’s approval, expected after the summer break.
- [VERIFY: exact list of designated weapon and knife ban zones and planned effective date once the Bundesrat votes]
Reporting based on tagesschau.de, “Bundestag weitet Befugnisse von Bundespolizei deutlich aus,” 10 July 2026.
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