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Automatic Acquisition of German Citizenship
Muslim life in Germany, © Federal Office for Migration and Refugees
Introduction
The German citizenship laws are generally based on descent. This means that citizenship is obtained by birth through a German parent.
It is not possible to skip generations. This means that you yourself cannot derive German citizenship from a grandparent. It may be possible, though, that one of your parents obtained German citizenship from your grandparent and that you became German because of your parent.
A person could become a German citizen automatically by
Birth in Wedlock
You became a German citizen by birth if your father was a German citizen at the time.
If only your mother was German, you did not derive German citizenship from her. There was the possibility of acquiring German citizenship by declaration until 1978. If the deadline was missed, you did not acquire German citizenship. A subsequent Naturalizationtoday is difficult and subject to strict requirements.
Since the 20.08.2021 there is again the possibility of acquiring German citizenship by declaration following § 5 StAG. Click Naturalizationfor further information.
You became a German citizen by birth if your father was a German citizen at the time. If only your mother was German, you became a German citizen only if you had otherwise been stateless.
If only your mother was German and you did not become stateless, you did not derive German citizenship from her. There was the possibility of acquiring German citizenship by declaration until 1978. If the deadline was missed, you did not acquire German citizenship. A subsequent naturalisation today is difficult and subject to strict requirements.
Since the 20.08.2021 there is again the possibility of acquiring German citizenship by declaration following § 5 StAG. Click Naturalizationfor further information.
You became a German citizen by birth if your father or your mother were German citizens at the time.
Since the 20.08.2021 there is again the possibility of acquiring German citizenship by declaration following § 5 StAG. Click Naturalizationfor further information.
You became a German citizen by birth if your father or your mother were German citizens at the time.
Attention: If you were born outside of Germany after 31/12/1999 and your German parent was also born outside of Germany after 31/12/1999 then you were not born a German citizen. In this case the birth must have been registered in Germany within one year of the date of birth for you to become German. See German Citizenship for the second generation born after 2000 for further Information.
Since the 20.08.2021 there is again the possibility of acquiring German citizenship by declaration following § 5 StAG. Click Naturalizationfor further information.
Birth out of Wedlock
You have acquired the German citizenship by birth if your mother was a German citizen at the time.
If only your father was a German citizen, you did not become a German citizen by birth. You may only be German by legitimation (see below). A subsequent naturalisation is subject to strict requirements like fluency in the German language.
Since the 20.08.2021 there is again the possibility of acquiring German citizenship by declaration following § 5 StAG. Click Naturalizationfor further information.
You became a German citizen by birth if your father or your mother were German citizens at the time.
However, if only your father was a German citizen, legal paternity must have been established before your 23rd birthday - biological paternity itself is not sufficient.
You became a German citizen by birth if your father or your mother were German citizens at the time.
If only your father was a German citizen, however, legal paternity must have been established before your 23rd birthday - biological paternity itself is not sufficient.
Attention: If you were born outside of Germany after 31/12/1999 and your German parent was also born outside of Germany after 31/12/1999 then you were not born a German citizen. In this case the birth must have been registered in Germany within one year of the date of birth for you to become German. See here for further information
Since the 20.08.2021 there is again the possibility of acquiring German citizenship by declaration following § 5 StAG. Click Naturalizationfor further information.
Legitimation
Legitimation meant that a child born out of wedlock became legitimised when the parents subsequently got married and thus subsequently obtained German citizenship from the father.
Choose your date of birth:
Your parents got married after your birth? You became a German citizen by legitimation if there was an acknowledgement of paternity that was valid in Germany. The same goes for a court decision regarding paternity.
Both the subsequent marriage, as well as the valid acknowledgement of paternity must have taken place before 30.06.1998 for you to be legitimised. A later acknowledgement of paternity or marriage did not result in you obtaining German citizenship. For more information please contact us.
A legitimation did no longer have any effect with regards to citizenship because children born out of wedlock became German automatically by birth, if either parent was German at the time of birth. See “birth out of wedlock”.
Adoption
A child may have become a German citizen through adoption, if the adoption is valid in Germany. Choose the date of your Adoption:
If you were adopted before 01/01/1959, you did not acquire German citizenship, even if both adoptive parents were German citizens at the time of Adoption.
You did not become a German citizen automatically by adoption. However, there was the possibility to obtain German citizenship through declaration; the deadline ended 31/12/1979. If a declaration was made, then you are in possession of a certificate of declaration.
You obtained German citizenship by law if you were adopted by a German parent and if the adoption was valid in Germany.
Information on recognition of foreign adoptions in Germany can be found here. For further information, please contact us.
Marriage
Since 1970, you could not acquire German citizenship through marriage, anymore. Please choose your date of marriage:
A woman who married a German man automatically became a German citizen.
A man did not become German by marrying a German woman.
A woman who married a German man became German under certain conditions. If this applied to you, you would generally know and have documentation on your German citizenship.
A man did not become German by marrying a German woman.
A woman who married a German man did not become German automatically. She could upon her wedding declare to the registrar's office that she wished to become a German citizen, or she could apply for naturalisation. In both cases, you would have received proof from the registrar's office or the naturalisation authority respectively.
A man did not become German by marrying a German woman.
A foreigner does not become a German citizen through marriage with a German.
Naturalisation require that the spouses have resided in Germany for a certain number of years, that the foreign spouse is well integrated in Germany and speaks the language fluently. Please contact the local citizenship authority at your German place of residence.
Birth in Germany
One does not become a German citizen merely by being born on German soil.
Exception: Since 01/01/2000 a child born in Germany may be a German citizen by birth if either parent has resided in Germany for at least 8 years and has permanent resident status. If, however, the child has not grown up in Germany subsequent to the birth, they must opt for either of their citizenships within one year of the 21st birthday. Please contact your German Mission.