Germany has begun confiscating valuables from refugees crossing into the country, claiming the property is in exchange for services they will get as asylum seekers.

According to a report from The Local, authorities in Germany’s southern Bavaria state have already started taking their things. In the neighboring state of Baden-Württemberg, police have begun confiscating cash and valuables above €350 ($378) in exchange for state aid.

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Local leaders defended the move, saying it corresponded with similar programs that have been in place in Switzerland for decades. But many have criticized the move, saying it’s reminiscent of practices against Jews in Europe during the Holocaust.

“Cash holdings and valuables can be secured if they are over €750 and if the person has an outstanding bill, or is expected to have one,” Bavarian Interior Minister Joachim Herrmann told Bild newspaper.

That news outlet reports that police in Bavaria estimate the average amount per person confiscated by authorities was “in the four figures.” Those who receive or plan to receive state aid must give up all income and wealth, which includes jewelry. German leaders equate it to the need-based unemployment benefit that German citizens receive.

The confiscations have outraged many in the international community. William Spindler, a spokesman for the U.N. Refugee agency UNHCR, told Mashable in a statement that the organization feared that European nations were in a “race to the bottom” to make their countries less attractive to refugees seeking asylum in Europe. UNHCR fears the new measures will “only create more hardship for people who have already suffered so much.”

“Refugees have lost their homes, their jobs and almost everything they possess. It is hard to believe that anybody will want to seize from them the few assets that they have managed to salvage!” Spindler said. “This is based on the wrong assumption that refugees are coming to Europe because of economic benefits. Refugees are fleeing for their lives, and will not be dissuaded by these measures.”

The move follows the introduction of a similar proposal in Denmark late last year that would allow authorities to seize items from refugees who enter the country without a visa.

Inger Stoejberg said the valuables would help to pay for the lodging, language classes, health care and job training courses of those who hoping to begin a new life in the country.

Stoejberg said the proposal aims at bringing refugees in line with unemployed Danes, who can only get social benefits if they sell any assets above 10,000 kroner, the equivalent of about $1,453.

After outrage greeted the news, Stoejberg clarified that wedding rings, watches or items “with a sentimental value,” would not be taken. Denmark will vote on the measure, which has been widely supported by lawmakers in the country, on Jan. 26.

Additional information from the Associated Press.

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