Germany reports more than 1,900 children missing ahead of awareness day

More than 1,900 children are currently listed as missing in Germany, marking a slight increase compared with last year, according to figures from the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA).

Ahead of International Missing Children’s Day, the agency said, as of May 1, authorities recorded 1,933 open missing-child cases nationwide, up from 1,810 unresolved cases a year earlier, Caliber.Az reports.

The data covers both recent disappearances and older cases that have remained unresolved for years.

Despite the rise in open cases, officials stressed that the vast majority are eventually solved. In 2025, police registered a total of 19,253 missing-child reports, of which 18,509 were resolved—equivalent to a clearance rate of 96.5%.

By comparison, around 15,500 children were reported missing in 2018, indicating an overall increase in reported cases over recent years.

A police spokesperson said that although case numbers have grown significantly, the resolution rate has remained consistently high. Authorities also noted that around 96% of cases are typically resolved within three months.

The figures cover children aged 13 and under. According to the BKA, most cases involve parental disputes, repeat runaways, or unaccompanied minor refugees. Family conflicts are also cited as a contributing factor in some instances.

Only a very small proportion of cases are linked to accidents or suspected criminal activity where a child may be in danger or no longer alive, officials said.

The oldest unresolved missing-child case in Germany dates back to 1957.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov