The new citizenship law is published in the Federal Bulletin
The new German citizenship law has been published in the Federal Bulletin. This means that in exactly three months in Germany, perhaps the most lenient requirements in the European Union for naturalization will begin to apply:▪ passport of a citizen – for five years, and in exceptional cases for three years;▪ no need to renounce previous citizenship.On January 19, 2024, the Bundestag approved the amendments in the second reading by a majority vote.On February 2, the law was successfully reviewed by the Bundesrat (representative office of the federal states).The essence of the reform is as follows:After the law comes into force, citizenship will be granted in five years instead of eight.- Spouses of German citizens will still be able to obtain citizenship in three years.- Other foreigners will be able to obtain citizenship in three years in the following cases:They show high academic or professional achievements or show civic engagement.They are able to support themselves and dependent family members without using public money.They will successfully pass the language exam at the C1 level.In some cases, with exceptional achievements in integration, such as success in work in public life plus proficiency in German at an advanced level (C1, not B1, as in the usual case), this period can be reduced to three years (now, under similar circumstances, six years); when obtaining a passport of a German citizen, you will not have to renounce your existing citizenship or existing citizenship, if there are several of them; – children born in Germany are automatically granted citizenship if at least one of the foreign parents has been legally residing in Germany for five years, not eight, as now; – children who have at least one German parent by nationality will be eligible for citizenship regardless of how long their foreign parent has been in the country.In addition, the amendments provide for various kinds of migration allowances. For example, for persons who wish to become naturalized and are subject to the conditions of naturalization, but have not been able to achieve the B1 level of the German language, despite “sincere efforts”.As before, when applying for German citizenship, the applicant must prove that he has the ability to support himself and his dependents. According to the law, an applicant for naturalization must work full-time or be able to provide for himself and his family in another way without resorting to unemployment benefits for at least 20 of the last 24 months. However, there are certain exceptions, including for the spouses of full-time citizens.
