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GERMAN CITIZENSHIP

Do I have to tell the German authorities if I gain another citizenship?

With dual nationality now permitted in Germany, foreigners with a German passport may want to reapply for an old citizenship they previously gave up or even take on a new one. Do the authorities still need to know about it?

Published: 12 September 2024 13:11 CEST

A Turkish and a German passport side by side. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Daniel Bockwoldt

Earlier this year, on June 27th, Germany brought into a force a sweeping reform of its naturalisation laws.

While previous generations of non-EU citizens had faced a difficult choice between their old nationality and the German nationality, the new law did away with this zero-sum game, allowing people to naturalise as Germans while keeping their old citizenship.

This major change has led to a flood of applications for German citizenship over the past few months, and it also inspired some foreigners to consider regaining a citizenship they gave up in the past in order to become German.

If you’re in this position – or are considering taking on a new citizenship elsewhere – you may be wondering if there are still rules you need to know about. (This is Germany, after all.)

Should you inform the authorities that you’re regaining an old passport? Is there some kind of permission you need to obtain? And can taking on a new citizenship affect your rights in Germany?

Here’s what you need to know.

You’re entitled to hold multiple nationalities

Though people often talk about dual nationality, it’s important to remember that the new law actually permits multiple nationalities – which means there’s theoretically no upper limit to the amount of passports you can obtain.

Previously, foreigners from non-EU countries were only able to obtain dual nationality in exceptional circumstances, and Germans taking on a non-EU citizenship would have to apply for what’s known as a Beibehaltungsgenehmigung – or permission to retain their German passport.

Since June 27th, however, these official permits have become obsolete, since the right to hold multiple nationalities is now enshrined in law.

There’s no need to inform the authorities

According to advice from the Federal Administration Office (BVA), there’s no obligation to get in touch with the immigration office or other government department once you decide to take on another citizenship.

The Interior Ministry recently confirmed this, explaining that the acquisition of a new citizenship would no longer impact an existing German citizenship under law, and vice versa.

“The obligation to notify the acquisition of a foreign nationality that previously existed… has been cancelled due to these amendments to the Nationality Act,” a ministry spokesperson told The Local.

Dual British and German nationality

A dual British and German national holds up their passports. Under proposed new rules, non-EU nationals will be able to take on German citizenship after living in Germany for five years, while retaining their original nationality. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Holger Hollemann

That said, Germany does record the nationalities of all its citizens in what’s known as the population register, which is based on information collected by the registration offices, or Meldebehörden.

“Any additional nationality acquired must be stated when registering a residence with the registration authority and proof of this must be provided,” the Interior Ministry spokesperson explained. “The registration authority then updates the nationalities stored in the population register on the basis of the facts communicated to it or documented by it.”

Once again, though, this won’t have an impact on your German citizenship.

Of course, on the other end, you’ll likely be asked about other citizenships you old while applying for citizenship in another country – particularly if that country has rules around dual nationality.

However, on the German side, this is one situation where you won’t have to worry about paperwork.

Dual nationality could affect your rights – but only slightly

Though taking on another citizenship shouldn’t affect your life in Germany, there’s one situation in which it could make a difference, but you’ll be pleased to know that it’s far from an everyday occurrence.

In very rare cases – such as when a foreigner commits a serious crime – German citizenship can be revoked from people who have naturalised.

Once again, this is extremely rare, and it can only happen if removing German citizenship would not make you stateless.

That means that taking on any other nationality would technically allow the authorities to revoke your German one, but only in very extreme circumstances.

If you stay on the right side of the law and haven’t misled the authorities in your German citizenship application, this isn’t a situation that’s likely to apply to you.

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Could Germany's dual nationality law be reversed?

In an article assessing Germany’s latest migration figures this week, Die Zeit raised a pertinent question: “What is actually out of control here,” asked journalist Mark Schieritz. “The migration, or the debate?”

While the number of asylum applications has been sinking dramatically this year – along with the number of so-called economic migrants – the discussion around migration has been building to a fever pitch.

In response to huge gains by the far-right AfD in both EU and eastern state elections, the government immediately sprung into action, extending controversial checks along all nine of Germany’s foreign borders.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) declared his intention to carry out “deportations on a grand scale” as mainstream parties met for a migration summit that quickly collapsed in disagreement.

At the same time, anti-migrant rhetoric has been ramping up, causing Deutschlandfunk to draw parallels with the early 1990s, when Germany saw a spate attacks against both refugees and foreigners who had been settled in the country for decades.

All of this feels very far removed from the Germany that has been desperate to court skilled foreigner workers over the past year, and that has fought to overturn a decades-long ban on dual nationality – which finally happened in June.

But it has caused some to wonder if the tide could be shifting, and if hard-won rights like dual nationality could be set to go out of the window. Here’s where things stand at present.

Threats from the CDU

The biggest threat to the dual nationality law arguably comes from the centre-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Christian Social Union (CSU) parties, who are long-standing opponents of the bill.

Shortly after the new citizenship law entered into force back in June, immigration spokesperson Alexander Throm told DPA that the parties intended to scrap it.

“The CDU and CSU will reverse this unsuccessful reform,” he said. “Dual citizenship must remain the exception and be limited to countries that share our values.”

CDU politician Alexander Throm speaks in a debate in the German Bundestag

CDU politician Alexander Throm speaks in a debate in the German Bundestag. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Christoph Soeder

But is this all hot air from a party that has vehemently campaigned against dual nationality for years on end? In the opinion of most political experts, the answer is yes.

“The CDU’s announcement that they would abolish the authorisation of dual citizenship is a desperate attempt to react to the growth of the AfD,” Nils Diederich, a political scientist at Berlin’s Free University, told The Local.

However, the party is unlikely to have the numbers in parliament to do so – even if they win the next election.

That’s because Germany’s system tends to rely on coalition governments, and every single one of the CDU and CSU’s viable coalition partners – the Greens, the Social Democrats (SPD) and the Free Democrats (FDP) – supports dual nationality.

This was backed up by Greens immigration expert Filiz Polat, who told The Local: “The CDU/CSU is completely isolated with its announcement that it will revoke the citizenship law in the event of a change of government.”

Furthermore, the CDU and CSU are highly unlikely to ever have the numbers in the Bundesrat to change the law. The upper house of parliament is comprised of state coalition governments that all need to agree in order to vote in favour of legislation.

With the exception of Bavaria, where the CSU governs alongside the Free Voters, or Freier Wähler, party, every single state coalition the CDU is part of involves some combination of of the Greens, SPD and FDP. As the parties who worked on and ultimately passed this law, they are unlikely to agree to overturn it.

What about the far-right AfD?

Many foreigners in Germany are understandably worried about the rise of the extremist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, who seem to be going from strength to strength lately.

In Bundestag debates on the new citizenship law, the AfD spoke out vehemently against the changes – a stance that is reiterated in the party’s Grundsatzprogramm, or key policy programme.

“The AfD rejects the ‘double passport’, i.e. the acquisition of German citizenship with the simultaneous continuation or acquisition of another citizenship,” the party writes. “Although this does not rule out well-founded special cases.”

In addition, they say, the requirements for naturalisation must be significantly increased.

A car drives past a billboard displaying an election campaign poster for Alternative for Germany (AfD) with the lettering 'The east is doing it - class in German' in Altenburg, eastern Germany on August 20th

A car drives past a billboard displaying an election campaign poster for Alternative for Germany (AfD) with the lettering ‘The east is doing it – class in German’ in Altenburg, eastern Germany on August 20th. Photo by JENS SCHLUETER / AFP

In spite of their recent successes in eastern states, however, the far-right party is still a long way away from seizing power in Germany on a national level (or even at the state level).

That’s primarily because all the major parties – including the CDU – have what’s known as a Brandmauer, or firewall, in place, that prevents them from formally cooperating with the AfD.

So, even if the CDU and CSU parties technically have the numbers to enter a coalition with the AfD after next year’s federal elections, the party’s constitution explicitly forbids them from doing so.

Any informal agreement – such as a pact to overturn the dual nationality law, for example – would also be politically toxic, and would almost inevitably split the party.

Where does the government stand?

Currently, the so-called traffic light coalition of the SPD, Greens and FDP – named after the parties’ three colours – is engaged in something of a balancing act.

While the rhetoric around migration has taken on a much more combative tone, the coalition has set a clear dividing line between legal skilled migration and uncontrolled, irregular migration.

In a fiery speech in the Bundestag on September 11th, Scholz emphasised Germany’s desperate need for migration to combat current labour shortages.

“There is no country in the world with a shrinking labour force that has economic growth,” he said. “That is the truth that we are confronted with.”

The chancellor also noted that Germany’s constitution mandates the protection of people who face danger and persecution. In other words: asylum seekers.

“Openness to the world is therefore necessary,” he explained. “But cosmopolitanism does not mean that anyone who wants to can come. We must be able to choose who comes to Germany.”

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz Bundestag

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) gives an impassioned speech during the general debate on the budget on September 11th, 2024. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Kay Nietfeld

According to political scientist Diederich, this cuts to the heart of the current issue.

“The authorisation of multiple citizenship has little to do with unregulated immigration,” he told The Local. “Naturalisation is granted to people who have been living legally in Germany for several years and who have successfully integrated into German society.”

On the other hand, Diederich said, the fear of “foreign infiltration” through unchecked, irregular and unwanted migration is being fuelled for political purposes.

“It’s not only the AfD doing this,” he added.

At present, the government seems laser-focused on dividing their pro-migration policies – like the recent skilled worker law and citizenship reform – from the need to quell irregular migration.

For foreigners here legally, this means that routes to German citizenship – and indeed, dual nationality – are set to remain in place for the forseeable future.

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