If you have been living in Germany as an expat for several years you may be eligible to apply for German citizenship (deutsche Staatsangehörigkeit).
Anyone thinking of applying for German citizenship needs to meet some strict requirements. There are three potential ways you can obtain German citizenship:
You have lived in Germany, uninterrupted, for at least five years and you meet all the other requirements listed below.
You are the direct descendant of a German parent (either mother, father or both). In order to qualify for this type of German citizenship, your birth must be registered within one year with the German mission in the country where you were born.
You were born within German borders to non-German parents. At least one of your parents must have been a permanent resident in Germany for at least five years and possess the necessary permissions to remain in Germany indefinitely. This means that these children acquire German citizenship in addition to th citizenship(s) of their parents.
Naturalisation involves going through an application process that can take several months or more. It is the most common way expats gain German citizenship.
To qualify for German citizenship by naturalisation, you need to meet the following criteria:
You will also need to demonstrate that you have sufficient command of the German language (level B1). This can be proven with any of the following:
If you came to Germany on or before June 30, 1974, as a guest worker, or moved to the German Democratic Republic (GDR) on or before June 13, 1990, as a contract worker, it is sufficient for you to prove to the authorities that you can communicate verbally in German in everyday life.
If you do not fulfil all the requirements, in special cases there may still be an option for you to apply for discretionary naturalisation, at the discretion of your local authorities.
In certain cases, you can apply for German citizenship after three years of living in Germany, instead of five. To do this, you must meet all of the following requirements:
You have been married to a German citizen for a minimum of two years (or been in a registered civil partnership for two years) and have lived in Germany legally for at least three years continuously, then you are able to apply for naturalisation.
If you have been married or in a partnership for more than three years, you may be able to qualify for German citizenship even sooner, under certain circumstances.
Your underage children can generally be naturalised with you, so long as:
Up until 2024, Germany only allowed dual citizenship in certain circumstances. With the new law, however, you are allowed to hold multiple citizenships after becoming a naturalised German citizen. This means you do not need to renounce your previous citizenship(s).
However, there may be complications depending on the laws in your country of origin. For instance, some countries automatically renounce your citizenship if you become a naturalised citizen of a different country. If you are unsure of the rules in your personal circumstance, speak to the embsasy or consulate of your country of origin.
If you fulfil all the necessary requirements and you want to apply for German citizenship, you need to apply to the appropriate authority. Which authority in Germany is responsible for citizenship matters depends on which federal state (Bundesland) you reside in. It is best to check with your local foreigners’ office (Ausländerbehörde) or citizens’ office (Bürgeramt).
Your local citizenship authority will schedule a consultation with you to discuss all the important information. If you are abroad when you apply for German citizenship, your application will be handled by your local German mission.
The citizenship authority will provide you with all the necessary information and forms during your initial consultation. Once you have gathered the required documentation, you can submit your application and pay the application fee. Your application will then be processed. Depending on your federal state, it can take anywhere between a few weeks and a few months to receive a decision.
If you have children under the age of 18 and you want them to have German nationality, you can request for them to be naturalised with you.
The citizenship authority will advise you on exactly which documents you need to prepare during your initial consultation. These will usually include:
Depending on your personal situation, some additional documents may be required.
An application for German citizenship by naturalisation costs 255 euros. If you are also submitting an application for dependent children, the fee is 51 euros for each child under 16.
You will also be required to pay 25 euros for the naturalisation test and, if your application is successful, an additional 25 euros for your certificate of naturalisation (Einbürgerungszusicherung).
Once your application has been considered, the citizenship authority will send you the outcome via post. This can take anywhere between a few weeks and several months.
If your application for German citizenship is successful, your letter will contain instructions on how to complete the process by attending a compulsory citizenship ceremony. At this ceremony, you must swear an oath of allegiance to Germany’s laws and customs in order to receive your certificate of naturalisation. Once you have German citizenship you can also apply for a German passport.
If for any reason your application was unsuccessful, you will also receive notice in the post explaining the grounds for the rejection. In this case, speak to your immigration office or citizenship authority to see if there are legal grounds for an appeal.
Becoming a German citizen means you gain some rights that are not available to non-citizens, even those who have permanent residency. The new rights given to you as a citizen include:
If you wish to remain in Germany indefinitely, but you do not meet all of the requirements for German citizenship, you might consider applying for a permanent residence permit instead.