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General Information on German citizenship - FAQs

Question 1
I have received dual citizenship by birth and have not acquired any other citizenship voluntarily since my birth. Do I have to choose between the two citizenships at the age of 18?

Question 2
How do I obtain German citizenship?

Question 3
How can I lose German citizenship?

Question 4
How can I obtain a certificate proving my German citizenship?

Question 1
I have received dual citizenship by birth and have not acquired any other citizenship voluntarily since my birth. Do I have to choose between the two citizenships at the age of 18?

German law, in general, does not oblige you to choose between the two citizenships at the age of 18.

Question 2
How do I obtain German citizenship ?

- by birth to a German parent
Laws regarding citizenship have been changed several times over the last decades. Whether or not a person has acquired German citizenship may therefore depend on the person's date of birth:

If you were born before January 1, 1975:

- If your parents were married at the time of your birth you acquired German citizenship if your father was German; you did not acquire German citizenship if only your mother was German (unless you would otherwise have been stateless).
- If your parents were not married at the time of your birth you acquired German citizenship if your mother was German; you did not acquire German citizenship if only your father was German.

If you were born on or after January 1, 1975:

If your parents were married at the time of your birth you acquired German citizenship if at least one parent was German.
If your parents were not married at the time of your birth you acquired German citizenship if your mother was German; you did not acquire German citizenship if only your father was German. However: a person born out of wedlock on or after July 1, 1993 can acquire German citizenship if only the father is German and if the father acknowledges paternity.

-by birth in Germany
If you were born after December 31, 1999 to foreign parents in Germany.
One of the parents must have been a legal resident in Germany for at least eight years at the time of your birth.
In addition, at least one parent must have an unlimited residence permit ("unbefristete Aufenthaltserlaubnis") or a residence entitlement ("Aufenthaltsberechtigung") at the time of your birth
If you obtain another citizenship by birth, you have to give up one citizenship between ages 18 and 23.

Please note:
Most US military personnel are in Germany for a period considerably shorter than 8 years; they neither have residence permits nor entitlements because of bilateral agreements.
In most cases therefore children born to US military personnel do not have the right to German citizenship (unless they had a German parent at the time of their birth)

- by adoption
If you were adopted by at least one German citizen on or after January 1, 1977, you are a German citizen. If the adoption happened outside Germany, it has to meet certain requirements (please call the competent German Mission in the US for further information).

- by naturalization
Naturalizations of people with permanent residence outside Germany are rare. Applicants have to meet a host of requirements; you typically have to give up your present citizenship(s) in order to become a German citizen, fluency in the German language is another precondition - for more information, contact the competent German Mission in the US.

Question 3
How can I lose German citizenship?

- by voluntarily acquiring a foreign citizenship
If you willingly apply for a foreign citizenship and obtain it, the German citizenship is automatically lost. If you obtain a foreign citizenship without an application for naturalization, you remain a German citizen.

- Please note: Loss of citizenship can be avoided by obtaining a special permit ("Beibehaltungsgenehmigung") before you are naturalized in a foreign country. For more information, see here.

- By voluntarily entering into the armed forces or other armed units of a country whose citizenship you also have (Example: a person with German and US citizenship starts a career in the US Navy). Male persons can avoid the loss of citizenship by getting a special permit.

- by renunciation (if you hold dual citizenship)
If you are holding dual citizenship (German and at least one other citizenship), you can renounce the German citizenship by declaration.

- by adoption
If you are adopted by a non-German and are no longer considered to be legally related to your German parent(s), you lose German citizenship if the adoption automatically makes you a citizen of your adopted parents' country.

Question 4
How can I obtain a certificate proving my German citizenship?

If your citizenship status cannot be determined by the German diplomatic or consular mission and in some other cases where the law requires it, you will need to apply for a German certificate of citizenship (Staatsangehörigkeitsausweis). Such a certificate might be needed in order to be able to issue you a German passport.
For further information please click here . The application form is available here .
Processing times for these applications can be fairly long depending on the amount of necessary research and the possible involvement of other government offices.

Dislaimer
Please note: Although the information on this website has been prepared with utmost care, we can not accept any responsibility for inaccuracies contained herein.
Wir haben die auf dieser Website enthaltenen Informationen mit grösster Sorgfalt für Sie zusammengestellt. Bitte haben Sie jedoch Verständnis dafür, dass wir für die Richtigkeit und Aktualität keine Gewähr übernehmen können.