Good news for those seeking German citizenship

Following the Federal Constitutional Court decision of 20 May 2020 in Germany, the eligibility criteria under Article 116 of the Basic Law (Grundgesetz) concerning the restoration of German citizenship have been extended.

With immediate effect, children born in wedlock before 1 April 1953 to German mothers whose citizenship had been revoked and foreign fathers, and children born out of wedlock before 1 July 1993 to German fathers whose citizenship had been revoked and foreign mothers, are also considered as descendants under citizenship law.

Prior to the Court decision, applicants to the Article 116 procedure who were rejected were referred to the discretionary naturalisation process under Section 14 of the Nationality Act. This latter application procedure was simplified by decrees announced last August, which has already resulted in the granting of German citizenship to some of the applicants.

The German government is now putting in place additional resources so that applications under Article 116 can be similarly expedited.

Anyone who submitted an application under Article 116 and was rejected on the basis of the legislation in force at the time can contact the diplomatic missions . More information here.