New, tougher asylum rules will take effect in Germany on Saturday, a week earlier than planned, as the country is faced with an unprecedented migrant influx, AFP has reported.

The German parliament had urgently approved a new bill that aims to make the country less attractive for asylum seekers, most of whom travel through Turkey and the Balkans. The new legislation had been initially expected to take effect on November 1, but it was published in the country’s legal gazette on Friday, which means it will become operational on Saturday, AFP said.

Under the new law Albania, Kosovo and Montenegro will be added to the list of “safe” countries meaning the right of political asylum will be only granted to their nationals as an exception.

Replacing the cash allowance granted to asylum seekers with benefits in kind during the period of considering their applications and speeding up expulsion procedures for those denied asylum are among the new measures aimed at making Germany a less attractive destination for migrants.

AFP quoted Chancellor Angela Merkel's chief of staff Peter Altmaier  as saying that the tougher asylum rules were “a signal” to would-be asylum seekers.

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