On Sunday, Australia was again dragged into a contentious Europe-wide debate.

"Germany's interior ministry floats hardline 'Australian-style' asylum policy," screamed one headline.

"Germany wants Australian-style boat turnbacks," declared another.

The story, which originated in the Welt am Sonntag national newspaper, quoted an unnamed spokeswoman proposing all asylum seekers plucked from the Mediterranean Sea be returned to refugee camps in northern Africa.

"The goal must be to remove the basis for people-smuggling organisations and to save migrants from the life-threatening journey", the source reportedly said.

Sound familiar?

The ABC's been told the story was not quite right.

A spokeswoman for Interior Minister Thomas De Maiziere said there were "no concrete plans" or "precise ideas" and clarified that the "model" of returning people was actually based on the agreement the European Union and Turkey reached to stop asylum seekers reaching Greece earlier this year.

But this is not the first time Australia's immigration policies have made headlines in Europe recently.

Australian border control policies catch on with some Europeans

After a September meeting in Berlin, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop told the ABC Mr De Maiziere took a keen interest in the "Coalition Government's border protection" policies.

A few days later, Ms Bishop met UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson in London and a few days after that he publicly called for the EU to turn boats back to Africa as a "deterrent".

Meanwhile in Denmark the right-wing Danish People's Party has been campaigning for an "Australian solution", which involves sending people to Greenland or Tanzania.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 6 minutes 54 seconds 6 m Labor rejects lifetime visa ban for refugees

What's my point?

Our nation has a reputation in Europe for "hardline" immigration policies.

In a few places, support for those policies is significant, in several others merely mentioning Australia's approach plays very well with part of the electorate.

In the wake of the Welt am Sonntag report, opposition political groups have attacked the German Government.

Luise Amtsberg from the Greens told the ABC boat turn-backs were a "destructive and populist" way of trying to "reduce the number of people reaching Germany".

Die Linke, a far-left political party, labelled Australia's policies "absolutely unacceptable".

Other asylum seeker advocates pointed out it will be impossible for Germany to turn back boats on its own, given it is largely landlocked, and any such proposal would need to be agreed through the European Union.

An unnamed source made headlines for proposing boat turn-back policies similar to Australia's. ( Reuters: Giorgos Moutafis )

But there is increasing pressure on the country's Government to do more to stem the flow of people into Europe.

On Saturday, 2,200 asylum seekers were rescued from the Mediterranean.

This year alone, 159,496 people have reached Italy from Africa and 4,220 have died trying, according to the International Organisation for Migration.

Many of those people want to live in Germany.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democrats have not only lost votes in recent elections to the anti-immigration group Alternative for Germany, but they are also being urged to take a harder line on asylum seekers by their allies in Bavaria's Christian Social Union.

The next German election is due between August and October next year.

Do not be surprised if Australia's immigration policies make headlines again.