The German government has presented its new citizenship law this Wednesday (23.08.2023). The legislation proposed by Interior Minister Nancy Faeser will make dual citizenship easier as well as naturalization for non-EU citizens.<

The new citizenship plans boil down to these changes:

• Immigrants legally living in Germany will be allowed to apply for citizenship after five years, rather than the current eight; and if they have special achievements this can go down to only three years

• Children born in Germany of at least one parent who has been living legally in the country for five or more years will automatically get German citizenship;

• Immigrants above the age of 67 will be able to do an oral instead of a written German language test

• Multiple citizenships will be allowed

People living entirely on state support will not be eligible for German citizenship. German citizenship will be denied to people who have committed antisemitic, racist, xenophobic or other defamatory offenses that are seen to be “unreconcilable with commitment to the free democratic basic order.”

The new legislation will be debated in parliament and could come into effect in the fall.<