Germany: Significant Liberalization of Citizenship Law Proposed

Germany’s federal government proposed measures which would significantly relax naturalization pathways, including (among other changes) reducing the minimum period of German residence necessary for naturalization from eight years to five years; allowing for multiple citizenships (currently, except in rare circumstances, German citizens cannot hold multiple citizenships); and allowing foreign national children to naturalize if at least one of their parents has habitually resided in Germany for at least five years (down from the current eight years) and has an unrestricted residence permit (with unlimited access to the labor market). The timeframe for legislative development and implementation is currently unclear, as the proposed changes must still pass Germany’s federal parliament and receive consent from the Federal Council of Germany. We will continue to track developments and provide further updates.