With over half of its population over the age of 40, Germany is dealing with an ageing society. On August 23, the German Cabinet passed a draft to change the country’s citizenship law. It will now be up for debate in Parliament (Bundestag) before it becomes law.
“Our modern immigration country needs a modern immigration law. Our diverse society needs it and our economy needs this reform just as urgently. We are in the middle of a global competition for the best minds,” said German Interior Minister Nancy Faeser.
According to the new changes, foreigners can apply for German citizenship after having lived in the country for five years (instead of eight previously). Germany will also allow non-EU citizens to have dual citizenship (if their native country allows it) — something applicable only to EU and Swiss citizens earlier. Exceptions to this draft proposal include foreigners receiving state support and people convicted of crimes for racist or anti-Semitic reasons.
‘Right move’
Berlin-based Sandeep Bajjuri, a startup consultant, coach and community manager, moved to Germany from Hyderabad, as a student. He has been living in Germany for close to a decade.
“The new German Citizenship Law is a step in the right direction, making the process more inclusive. But there’s a lot of room for improvement,” Mr. Bajjuri said, hinting at bureaucratic delays, moving systems online and prioritising people who have been here longer.
The rules for applying for citizenship vary depending on the State one is applying from. In Berlin, one requires a consultation appointment where your case is evaluated and you are told which documents are required. Mr. Bajjuri says he applied for the consultation in October 2022 and is still awaiting an appointment.
According to the Federal Statistical Office, around 1,68,545 applicants with 171 different nationalities received German citizenship in 2022. The Federal Interior Ministry noted that 14% of the German population does not have a German passport.
Abdallah Khirfan, a German Citizenship consultant, notes that the new Citizenship Law brings a positive hope for foreigners, more stability in their lives and a motivation to achieve more in Germany and not feel excluded.
“The planned changes in German citizenship law would mark a major reform, particularly in the area of naturalisation. Yet, the central conditions for becoming a German citizen, such as knowledge of the language, economic independence, criminal impunity and a commitment to the democratic constitutional order, will be retained,” said Jan Schneider, head of research unit at the Expert Council on Integration and Migration (SVR).
Impact on Indian students and professionals
According to the ifo Institute that surveyed over 9,000 firms in Germany, “43.1% of firms reported suffering from a shortage of qualified workers”. Labour shortage exists across industries. But when it comes to a skilled workforce, Indians certainly have an edge.
Indian nationals were granted a record 17,379 work visas in 2022, according to the German Federal Foreign Office. In Berlin, Indians make up the second largest non-German expat group after Ukrainians.
Most Indians come to Germany as students and working professionals. The new citizenship regulations would also take into consideration the two years as a postgraduate student, where an Indian student doesn’t really work or pay taxes.
“If a student is able to support themselves financially during their two years of postgraduate study, and secure a full-time job after their studies which makes them financially independent, then they are eligible to apply for citizenship. The two years as a student — when they did not pay taxes — would not matter in the naturalisation process,” Mr. Schneider said.
In exceptional cases, under the new regulations, citizenship can be applied for even after three years. But this will need ‘special integration achievements’ for eligibility.
“The law explicitly mentions exceptional academic, vocational or professional performance as well as civic involvement — things such as volunteering in youth or social work for the local community. However, achieving effective proficiency in German at the C1 level within just three years will probably be the most difficult challenge,” Mr. Schneider said.
Reservations from the Opposition
The new changes to the German Citizenship Law are being criticised by the Opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and Christian Socialist Union (CSU) parties. According to a statement from Andrea Lindholz, a German MP from the CSU, the draft law is sending “completely wrong signals, in the current migration crisis”.
Ms. Lindholz has condemned the easing of the naturalisation period. “Integration takes time — and is more than work and language. Naturalisation must come at the end of a successful integration process, not at the beginning,” Ms. Lindholz said, noting that priority must be given to highly qualified foreigners who have been gainfully employed for over 24 months without a break.
According to Mr. Khirfan, “Going through the process of giving up your original nationality and passport is the top roadblock for people. For refugees, their proof of identity can be risky.”
SVR’s Mr. Schneider notes that the other criticism by the CDU and the CSU that a person cannot be loyal to two nation-states is a deeply conservative position and not convincing. “We have seen many examples in Germany of how people live in a fluid transnational constellation and can still have strong feelings of identity towards two countries,” Mr. Schneider said.
The citizenship applications’ durations are different in every State. According to Mr. Bajjuri, in Berlin, almost everyone is stuck in a bureaucratic limbo. “Two of my close friends started the process around the same time and only one has received his passport so far. Though a friend in Ingolstadt (in the south German State of Bavaria) had a surprisingly smooth process and the whole process took him less than six months and everything was done via post,” said Mr. Bajjuri.
Mr. Khirfan noted that the time span for the citizenship process in Berlin could take up to two years based on statistics. “Changing the employment status in this period could also affect the process or slow it down,” Mr. Khirfan said.
Dual citizenship rules
Ms. Faeser noted in her speech that dual citizenship would ensure that people are not “forced to give up part of their identity.”
The CSU’s Ms. Lindholz states that dual citizenship for non-EU citizens should not be allowed. “The double passport also strengthens the political influence of foreign states in Germany. Therefore, the current exceptions, especially for EU citizens, should remain the same,” Ms. Lindholz said.
Germany has a significant Turkish population as a result of the guest workers who were invited to help rebuild the erstwhile West Germany in the 1970s. Their children who have grown up in Germany, also have Turkish citizenship as Turkey allows inheritance of citizenship. According to Mr. Schneider, if the inheritance is allowed infinitely and reaches a point where future generations have no connection to the country of their ancestors, then it could be problematic from the perspective of political theory and practice.
“For instance, in the last Turkish elections, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was rallying not just among the older generation of Turkish people living in Germany but also among the second and third-generation populace, some of whom hardly have any connections to Turkiye anymore, nor an interest in politics in the country of their forefathers,” Mr Schneider said. According to him, democratic over-inclusion is an issue that’s been brought up by a lot of organisations including SVR. “In theory, it would work if Germany had bilateral legal agreements with other countries to cut down on infinite inheritance, but it’s not feasible in practice,” Mr. Schneider said.
The Indian scene
In the case of Indian applicants, this is a moot point as India does not allow dual citizenship.
For Mr. Bajjuri, the main motivators to apply for German citizenship include the global access a German passport provides, flexibility to work and travel freely within Europe and better financial incentives like preferential interest rates.
“What exactly are we afraid of?” Mr. Khirfan asks regarding the criticism from the CDU and the CSU of the proposed law. He is of the belief that this sentiment is not shared by all the major representatives in the party and only time will tell if this could be a strong line of division within the party.
“Since the German passport is considered a reward for many foreigners, I believe giving them this reward after three or five years will enhance their belonging to Germany and its culture. I don’t really see the problem with this perspective,” Mr. Khirfan said.
(Nimish Sawant is an independent journalist based in Berlin)
