Germany will reduce the time to obtain citizenship from eight to five years

The tripartite federal government agreed to cut back eight to five years residence time of foreign nationals to apply for German citizenship, which can be submitted even after only three years in case of extraordinary integration. This last assumption is for people with good language skills, participation in volunteer activities or excellent work performance.

The Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens, however, gave in to the request of the Liberals (FDP) to exclude those who receive state aid to survive from this privilege. Anyone who wants to become a German citizen must be capable of supporting themselves and their families without public support. Exceptions will only be for those who, despite working full time, need an additional subsidy to make ends meet or for petitioners with minor children.

They can also be nationalized migrants residing in this country before 1974 or workers from third countries employed by the German Democratic Republic before its demise in 1990 who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own even though they are currently receiving public assistance to survive.

“We want to reward a huge performance for our country generation provodbeiter»immigrants who made the so-called German economic miracle possible, said Interior Minister Nancy Faeser, a Social Democrat.

two passports

A 49-page document produced by his ministry also states that they have been nationalized won’t haveas before and with small exceptions, which renounce their original citizenship and will be able to enjoy two passports

The bill prepared by the parties that are part of the executive branch headed by Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz also states that “any anti-Semitic, racist, xenophobic act or that in any other way offends human dignity” violates the fundamental liberal order of democratic countries and that this confession mandatory condition to obtain German citizenship.

Prosecutors’ offices will in the future be required to inform the authorities responsible for granting German citizenship about persons convicted of crimes related to these cases. No matter how small the fine, they will be excluded and will not be able to get a German passport. “Anyone who does not share our values ​​cannot become a German,” said Faeser, who spoke of “zero tolerance.”

The draft bill was delivered this Friday to the governments of 16 federal states Germans to check, so the proposal is expected to be adopted this summer. “We want people who have become part of our society, it can also participate in the democratic design of the country», said the Minister of the Interior, who worked closely with her colleague from the judiciary, liberal Marc Buschmann, in the preparation of the document.

Faeser emphasized that the reform of the legislation for obtaining German citizenship is necessary in order to “achieve qualified workforce which we urgently need” and talked about a “paradigm change”, because in order to become Germans the interested parties will no longer have to “give up a part of their identity”