The German parliament is close to passing a new nationality law that would make it much easier for foreigners to become citizens of Germany.
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In terms of how people with immigrant histories are treated in the country, it is considered as a moderate revolution. Furthermore, it stands in stark contrast to the tendency of close-by countries to raise rather than lower their citizenship requirements.
Instead of the existing eight years, the proposed bill would allow people to petition for citizenship after just five years. Additionally, it says that after three years, “those who have made a particular effort to integrate, such as becoming proficient in German, engaging in volunteer work, or doing well in school, may apply.”
However, the easing of the restriction on dual citizenship for nationals of non-EU nations is the aspect of the measure that its proponents value the most. Lamya Kaddor, the Green Party’s spokesman for home affairs and a child of Syrian immigrants, said: “A lot of people in our nation have hybrid identities, and our law has to reflect that.”
“The notion that you have a single homeland is wholly out of date.” Once passed, the law may have a significant effect on German society. Around 10 million people, or around 12% of the population, reside in Germany without a German passport. Of these, 5.7 million have been citizens for at least 10 years. Additionally, studies have demonstrated the advantages of rapid naturalization.
Naturalizations becoming the norm in Germany
After 16 years of conservative Christian Democrats led by Angela Merkel, the citizenship law is one of a number of reforms that chancellor Olaf Scholz’s coalition of Social Democrats, Greens, and liberals pledged to modernize German society (CDU). In addition, promises to legalise cannabis, decrease the voting age to 16, and make it simpler for anyone to declare a gender change are included in the coalition agreement negotiated in November 2021.
However, immigration reform may be the most extensive. It promises to be the most significant change to Germany’s nationality laws since 2000, when new legislation made it the first time that children born to immigrants automatically qualified for citizenship in Germany. According to the preamble to the bill, Germany’s naturalization rate is below the EU average. However, it also states that it is in “the interests of the entire society” for as many immigrants as possible who meet the standards to naturalize.
Jihene Dammak, a Tunisian immigrant to Germany who came to Germany about eight years ago, is among those who are in favor of the planned change. She is a qualified engineer who attempted to launch her own business providing guidance and mentorship to international students, but her lack of German citizenship proved to be a significant barrier. Without a German passport, she claimed, it would be very hard to start a business or obtain a loan.
Bureaucratic Backlog Hinders Citizenship Reform
The skilled employees Germany so sorely needs are not attracted in the slightest by the current system. “You’re always uneasy for the eight years you have to reside here to qualify for citizenship – if you lose your job, you’re out,” a worker said. “Eight years is way too much time.”
The citizenship measure will be linked with immigration reform, which would be based on a points system similar to that in Canada and aim to facilitate the entry of talented workers into Germany. It will no longer be necessary for applicants to demonstrate that they hold a professional degree that is recognized in Germany; instead, proof of relevant work experience and a job offer will suffice.
Despite this, the opposition CDU believes that the entire change, particularly the accelerated naturalization, is incorrect. Alexander Throm, the CSU’s spokesperson for home affairs, argued that five years “is not long enough for meaningful integration and to assess whether someone should actually become a permanent member of our society.
” The extreme right-wing party Alternative for Germany has increased its criticism. During one of the Bundestag debates on the subject, AfD MP Gottfried Curio claimed that the government was “flogging off German passports dirt cheap to persons who haven’t fully assimilated.”
However, German bureaucracy, not the opinions of the CDU and AfD, is the largest barrier to the forthcoming change. According to a recent article in the Die Welt newspaper, local government officials in some of Germany’s largest towns are trying to handle a backlog of citizenship applications that is 26,000 strong, 10,000 of which date back to 2021. Unions lament the critical dearth of workers who are capable of handling the requests.
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