Trial in Feldkirch

Afghan man bought himself a language diploma

(Bild: Dorn Chantall)

A 35-year-old Afghan man had to answer for serious fraud and forgery of documents at the Feldkirch Regional Court on Tuesday. The man confessed - and got off with a lenient sentence.

"I did this for my family because I really wanted them to come to Austria," said the 35-year-old Afghan, pleading guilty to the charges against him. It is his second marriage. He has two children with his wife and she is pregnant with a third. But a family reunification is out of the question. This is because the man, who now lives in Vorarlberg and works as a forklift driver, is still considered to be entitled to subsidiary protection. This also means that a completed German course is a prerequisite for the extension of his residence permit. The language certificate - in his case B1 - must in turn be presented to the district authority. Only then can the family be considered for immigration via the Austrian integration authority.

Lack of German language skills
Now the Afghan was faced with the problem of hardly speaking any German, even after 13 years of living in Austria. Passing a language test therefore seemed unthinkable. In Vienna, the 35-year-old finally turned to a rather enterprising Pakistani who had already sat the exams for other asylum seekers in return for payment. To do this, the criminal first forged the refugee ID card. He also falsified the content of the language diplomas themselves on a case-by-case basis. The full extent of the fraudulent activities of the Pakistani, who is now being prosecuted separately, came to light during a house search in Vienna. His laptop also contained countless data on refugees for whom the fraudster had forged documents.

"Finally complete this language course successfully"
In the trial at Feldkirch District Court, the 35-year-old defendant appears remorseful. "I am very sorry for what I did. But I lost my first wife and my son in a bomb attack in Afghanistan and I just want my current family to be with me soon." Because the man has no criminal record, the guilty verdict ends with a partial fine of 960 euros. Judge Lisa-Sophia Huter concludes: "Then make sure that you finally complete this language course successfully. Because the way you thought you would, that's not possible in Austria." The judgment is not yet final.