Editing Inner German border (section)

===Border crossing regulations===

West Germans were able to cross the border relatively freely to visit relatives, but had to go through numerous bureaucratic formalities. East Germans were subjected to far stricter restrictions. It was not until November 1964 that they were allowed to visit the West at all, and even then only pensioners were allowed, as they were believed to be less likely to escape. This gave rise to a joke that only in East Germany did people look forward to old age.<ref>[[#Shears|Shears (1970)]], p. 15.</ref> Younger East Germans were not allowed to travel to the West until 1972, though few did so until the mid-1980s. They had to apply for an exit visa and passport, pay a substantial fee, obtain permission from their employer and undergo an interrogation from the police.<ref>"The formalities to be carried out by citizens of the GDR wishing to enter the Federal Republic." [[#Grenzmuseum|Grenzmuseum Eichsfeld]] (Border Museum Eichsfeld).</ref> The odds were against successful applications, and only approximately 40,000 a year were approved. Refusal was often arbitrary, dependent on the goodwill of local officials.<ref>[[#Childs|Childs (2001)]], p. 29.</ref> Members of the Party elite and cultural ambassadors were frequently given permission to travel, as were essential transport workers. However, they were not permitted to take their families with them.<ref>[[#Bailey|Bailey (1983)]], p. 32.</ref>

Until the late 1980s, ordinary East Germans were only permitted to travel to the West on "urgent family business" such as the marriage, serious illness or death of a close relative. In February 1986, the regime relaxed the definition of "urgent family business", which prompted a massive increase in the number of East German citizens able to travel to the West.<ref name="McCartney">[[#McCartney|McCartney (1988-04-16)]].</ref> The relaxation of the restrictions was reported to have been motivated by a desire on the part of the East German leadership to reduce their citizens' desire to travel and shrink the number applying to emigrate. In practice, however, it had exactly the opposite effect.<ref name="McCartney" />