The German government has budgeted more than €40 million (£35 million) to pay asylum seekers to voluntarily return to their home countries.

Migrants will be offered financial incentives of up to €1,200 (£1,000) each to leave Germany and withdraw their application for protection, with a lower amount of €800 (£700) if they choose to depart after being refused asylum.

The German interior ministry is running the “StarthilfePlus” programme with the UN’s International Organisation of Migration (IOM), mirroring similar initiatives run in other European countries since the start of the refugee crisis.

It is open to “destitute” citizens of some of the world’s top refugee producing countries, including Syria, Afghanistan, Eritrea, Iraq and Nigeria, while Russians, Turks, Ukrainians and other nationalities will be excluded from support after the programme’s “transitional stage”.

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In order to receive the money, returnees must sign a formal declaration to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) pledging to withdraw the asylum application and the legal remedies already applied and refrain from any further appeals.

Thomas de Maizière, the German interior minister, said StarthilfePlus was intended for those with “very poor chances of success” under the country’s asylum laws.

“I appeal to understanding and reason: For all those who have no prospect of staying in Germany, voluntarily departure represents a better way than deportation,“ he added.

“If the possibility of a voluntary return is not used, only the instrument of deportation remains. Only with the consistent application of the law can the functionality of our asylum system be ensured.”

The IOM said the funding, including extra “family assistance” grants, is paid out in two stages – one half in Germany before departure and the remainder within eight months of their proven arrival in the country of origin. Children under 12 receive half the adult amount.

The programme was launched as civil servants continue to battle a backlog of around 400,000 asylum claims created by the unprecedented number of refugees who arrived in Germany in 2015.

Refugees settle in Germany Show all 12 1 /12 Refugees settle in Germany Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Zayat, a refugee from Syria, plays with his daughter Ranim, who is nearly 3, in the one room they and Mohamed's wife Laloosh call home at an asylum-seekers' shelter in Vossberg village on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. The Zayats arrived approximately two months ago after trekking through Turkey, Greece and the Balkans and are now waiting for local authorities to process their asylum application, after which they will be allowed to live independently and settle elsewhere in Germany. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity 2015 Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany A refugee child Amnat Musayeva points to a star with her photo and name that decorates the door to her classroom as teacher Martina Fischer looks on at the local kindergarten Amnat and her siblings attend on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. The children live with their family at an asylum-seekers' shelter in nearby Vossberg village and are waiting for local authorities to process their asylum applications. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Kurdish Syrian asylum-applicant Mohamed Ali Hussein (R), 19, and fellow applicant Autur, from Latvia, load benches onto a truckbed while performing community service, for which they receive a small allowance, in Wilhelmsaue village on October 9, 2015 near Letschin, Germany. Mohamed and Autur live at an asylum-applicants' shelter in nearby Vossberg village. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Ali Hussein ((L), 19, and his cousin Sinjar Hussein, 34, sweep leaves at a cemetery in Gieshof village, for which they receive a small allowance, near Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Zayat, a refugee from Syria, looks among donated clothing in the basement of the asylum-seekers' shelter that is home to Mohamed, his wife Laloosh and their daughter Ranim as residents' laundry dries behind in Vossberg village on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. The Zayats arrived approximately two months ago after trekking through Turkey, Greece and the Balkans and are now waiting for local authorities to process their asylum application, after which they will be allowed to live independently and settle elsewhere in Germany Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Asya Sugaipova (L), Mohza Mukayeva and Khadra Zhukova prepare food in the communal kitchen at the asylum-seekers' shelter that is their home in Vossberg village in Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Efrah Abdullahi Ahmed looks down from the communal kitchen window at her daughter Sumaya, 10, who had just returned from school, at the asylum-seekers' shelter that is their home in Vossberg Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Asylum-applicants, including Syrians Mohamed Ali Hussein (C-R, in black jacket) and Fadi Almasalmeh (C), return from grocery shopping with other refugees to the asylum-applicants' shelter that is their home in Vossberg village in Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Mohamed Zayat (2nd from L), a refugee from Syria, smokes a cigarette after shopping for groceries with his daughter Ranim, who is nearly 3, and fellow-Syrian refugees Mohamed Ali Hussein (C) and Fadi Almasalmeh (L) at a local supermarket on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. All of them live at an asylum-seekers' shelter in nearby Vossberg village and are waiting for local authorities to process their asylum applications, after which they will be allowed to live independently and settle elsewhere in Germany 2015 Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Kurdish Syrian refugees Leila, 9, carries her sister Avin, 1, in the backyard at the asylum-seekers' shelter that is home to them and their family in Vossberg village in Letschin Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany Somali refugees and husband and wife Said Ahmed Gure (R) and Ayaan Gure pose with their infant son Muzammili, who was born in Germany, in the room they share at an asylum-seekers' shelter in Vossberg village on October 9, 2015 in Letschin, Germany. Approximately 60 asylum-seekers, mostly from Syria, Chechnya and Somalia, live at the Vossberg shelter, which is run by the Arbeiter-Samariter Bund (ASB) charity, and are waiting for authorities to process their application for asylum 2015 Getty Images Refugees settle in Germany Germany German Chancellor Angela Merkel pauses for a selfie with a refugee after she visited the AWO Refugium Askanierring shelter for refugees in Berlin Getty Images

The number of new applications plummeted by more than 600,000 last year, standing at less than a third of those at the height of the crisis, when Angela Merkel opened Germany’s borders to Syrian refugees amid a series of boat disasters in the Mediterranean and Aegean seas.

Her policy sparked the arrival of more than a million asylum seekers in Germany, many of whom are still housed in temporary accommodation while awaiting a government decision.

Anti-immigration and far-right groups have criticised the decision, blaming the Chancellor for a series of Isis-inspired terror attacks carried out by migrants in Germany last year, including the Berlin Christmas market massacre.

A man linked to the dead suspect was extradited to Tunisia on Wednesday, following outrage over revelations the Berlin attacker and a known Isis recruiter were not deported to the country because of delays with paperwork.

Germany is the latest European country to boost “voluntary return” programmes amid growing anti-immigration sentiment across the continent.

Denmark’s initiative, also run with the IOM, caused 532 asylum seekers to voluntarily leave the country last year - a record number.