Abstract
Active aging and ideas concerning integration are generally intertwined in public-policy discourse regarding older immigrants in Germany. Work is considered both a means to reach a happy old age and the key to social integration. However, many older immigrants work in precarious jobs and the media often construes them as a burden or threat to German society. Examining tensions between the model of active aging and challenges posed by “foreigner” status, this paper explores the Turkish and Russian communities, who account for the highest percentage of aging immigrants in Germany. Based on 24 interviews with older immigrants (12 Turkish, 12 Russian), it argues that these are further from the positive aging ideal compared to their German counterparts. Findings reflect how precarious aging immigrants become “the other”, facing insecurity and exclusion from main-stream society, and help explore implications for policy and practice.