Depending on the country of origin, the routes and means the women use for entering the country are certainly quite different. While (new) EU citizens can easily enter the country legally, women from other countries in Central and Eastern Europe try to do so with forged passports of the new EU member states or set off on their journey without the necessary documents. After all, they know that it is virtually impossible for women without resources to obtain a Schengen visa. Some women know before they begin their journey that they do not hold a visa for the trip. Others only learn this in the course of their journey.

In those cases where entering the country by an overland route is almost impossible (e.g. from Thailand or Nigeria) the women usually enter the country legally. However, in order to facilitate the trip, they need papers, invitations etc., and this raises the costs for the journey. Usually they enter the country with a tourist visa which is valid for three months. After this period they are either "illegal" which makes them similarly susceptible to blackmail as women who entered the country without any documents, or they are informed that they can/must get married so they can legalize their status at least to all appearance.

Many women agree to these marriages - for lack of alternatives or in the hope of obtaining a residence status (at least a temporary one). Usually they do not know that a residence status based on a lie is always risky since their legal status practically depends on their husbands' goodwill - a report to the foreigners' registration office is quite sufficient to illegalise the women, even if they have been married for several years. They also do not know that the marriage has to be sustained for at least two years if they want to legally remain in Germany even after being separated. The basis for this is section 31 of the Residence Act. If women were to inform the authorities because of their being exploited, their so-called "sham marriage" would be uncovered and they would lose the statutory basis for their residence permit. Therefore, women who do not have any other possibilities of obtaining legal residence are naturally not willing to testify against the perpetrators.

During police raids affected women who hold legal papers don't attract any attention - even if they are trafficked. This is due to the fact that for the police, one of the main indicators usually is the absence of a residence status. It would therefore be desirable for the police to focus on the working conditions and not on the legal status.