How German citizenship by descent works
The eligibility rules for German citizenship by descent, in plain English — who may qualify, what disqualifies, and the legal regimes over time, each cited to its primary statute.
Who may qualify
A qualifying path — via the restoration route
Requirements
The qualifying ancestor must have lost German citizenship through Nazi-era persecution (Article 116(2) of the Basic Law) — for example the 11th Decree deprivation of 1941 — which the law treats as if it never happened.
- persecution mechanism:
- germany_art_116_2
Primary sources
- § Art. 116(2) Grundgesetz (Basic Law of 23 May 1949)
- § § 4(4) sentence 4 StAG — Generationenschnitt does NOT apply to Art. 116(2) descendants [DE-AA, DE-VG]
- § Bundesverwaltungsamt (BVA) Cologne — sole authority for Art. 116(2) restoration claims
A qualifying path — via the declaration route
Date keying
- In force during the window 2021-08-20 up to (but not including) 2031-08-20 — keyed on the assessment date, not on anyone's birth.
Requirements
ALL of the following
ANY of the following
the qualifying ancestor has a recorded gender discrimination such that category = cat1a.
- category:
- cat1a
ALL of the following
the qualifying ancestor has a recorded gender discrimination such that category = cat1b.
- category:
- cat1b
the qualifying ancestor has a qualifying paternity recognized before 23 (confirmed). If this fact is absent, the rule treats it as not applying (rather than asking for more information).
- confirmed:
- true
the qualifying ancestor has a recorded gender discrimination such that category = cat2.
- category:
- cat2
the qualifying ancestor has a recorded gender discrimination such that category = cat3.
- category:
- cat3
ANY of the following
the applicant has a qualifying birth (born before 2000).
- born before 2000:
- true
the applicant has a qualifying birth (consular registration within one year).
- consular registration within one year:
- true
the applicant has a qualifying birth (parent born in germany).
- parent born in germany:
- true
the applicant has a qualifying birth (parent born before 2000).
- parent born before 2000:
- true
Primary sources
- § § 5 Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz (added by Fourth Act Amending the Nationality Act, 20 August 2021)
- § § 5 StAG four categories: in-wedlock pre-1975 German-mother child / non-marital pre-1993 German-father child / pre-1 Apr 1953 marriage-loss child / foreign-father-legitimation child; plus their descendants (cat 4, no generation cap) [DE-AA, DE-TNP5]
- § § 5 StAG declaration deadline: 19 August 2031 (statutory, no extension) [DE-AA, DE-TNP5]
- § § 4(4) StAG — Generationenschnitt DOES apply to §5 cat-4 descendants [DE-VG]
A qualifying path — via the restoration route
Date keying
- In force from 2021-08-20 onward — keyed on the assessment date, not on anyone's birth.
Requirements
ALL of the following
The qualifying ancestor must have lost German citizenship through a pattern recognized by §15 of the Nationality Act — marriage to a foreigner before 1953, foreign naturalization while fleeing the Nazis, or a Bohemia/Moravia/Sudetenland citizenship transfer.
- persecution mechanism:
- germany_15_stag
ANY of the following
the qualifying ancestor has a qualifying citizenship lost (before 1955 02 26).
- before 1955 02 26:
- true
the qualifying ancestor has a qualifying citizenship lost (cat1 not applicable).
- cat1 not applicable:
- true
Primary sources
- § § 15 Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz (added by Fourth Act Amending the Nationality Act, 20 August 2021)
- § § 15 StAG four categories: loss before 26 Feb 1955 / exclusion from acquisition / denied naturalisation / loss of habitual residence [DE-EMB15, DE-A116]
- § § 15 StAG as amended by StARModG, 27 June 2024 — renunciation of existing citizenship no longer required (procedural; categories unchanged) [DE-EMB24]
- § § 4(4) sentence 4 StAG — Generationenschnitt does NOT apply to §15 descendants [DE-AA, DE-VG]
A qualifying path — via the feststellung route
Requirements
ALL of the following
Must NOT be true
the applicant's link to the qualifying ancestor is by adoption (rather than by birth).
- tie is adoptive:
- yes
the qualifying ancestor must have held german citizenship at the moment the applicant was born, passing it down the line by descent.
- required citizenship:
- german
the qualifying ancestor must not have naturalized as a citizen of another country before the applicant was born.
Every intermediate ancestor between the applicant and the qualifying ancestor must have still held citizenship when they passed it to the next person down the line (the chain must be unbroken), where a break can be caused by: naturalization.
- chain-breaking events:
- naturalization
ANY of the following
the qualifying ancestor has a qualifying consular registration (registered).
- registered:
- true
the qualifying ancestor has a qualifying consular registration (not required).
- not required:
- true
Primary sources
- § Bundes- und Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz of 1 June 1870, § 21 (automatic loss after 10 continuous years abroad; interrupted by Matrikel enrolment, clock restarts day after Löschung; 5-year reduction under a bilateral naturalisation treaty) — verbatim: https://www.verfassungen.de/de67-18/staatsbuergerschaft70.htm
- § RuStAG of 22 July 1913, §§ 31 & 41 (effective 1 January 1914; § 31 mandated re-naturalisation for stateless ex-Germans but did NOT retroactively reverse pre-1914 § 21 losses) — https://www.verfassungen.de/de67-18/rustag13.htm
A qualifying path — via the feststellung route
Requirements
ALL of the following
the applicant has a recorded adoption such that was finalized = true, adoption date = {"on_or_after":"1977-01-01"}. If this fact is absent, the rule treats it as not applying (rather than asking for more information).
- was finalized:
- true
- adoption date:
- {"on_or_after":"1977-01-01"}
the applicant has a recorded adoption such that adoption type = full. If this fact is absent, the rule treats it as not applying (rather than asking for more information).
- adoption type:
- full
Citizenship must have passed to the applicant through a finalized adoption, with the adoptive parent holding german citizenship at the time of the adoption, and the adoption finalized before the applicant turned 18.
- required citizenship:
- german
- adoption before age:
- 18
Primary sources
- § § 6 Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz (StAG) (in force 1 January 1977, last amended 2024) — automatic acquisition by a foreign child adopted as a minor (under 18) by a German citizen; § 6 sentence 3 requires the foreign adoption to extinguish the prior biological parent-child relationship (Volladoption)
A qualifying path — via the feststellung route
Requirements
ALL of the following
Must NOT be true
the applicant's link to the qualifying ancestor is by adoption (rather than by birth).
- tie is adoptive:
- yes
the qualifying ancestor must have held german citizenship at the moment the applicant was born, passing it down the line by descent.
- required citizenship:
- german
the qualifying ancestor must not have naturalized as a citizen of another country before the applicant was born.
Every intermediate ancestor between the applicant and the qualifying ancestor must have still held citizenship when they passed it to the next person down the line (the chain must be unbroken), where a break can be caused by: naturalization.
- chain-breaking events:
- naturalization
ANY of the following
the applicant has a qualifying birth (born before 2000).
- born before 2000:
- true
the applicant has a qualifying birth (consular registration within one year).
- consular registration within one year:
- true
the applicant has a qualifying birth (parent born in germany).
- parent born in germany:
- true
the applicant has a qualifying birth (parent born before 2000).
- parent born before 2000:
- true
Primary sources
- § § 4 Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz (StAG)
- § § 4(4) StAG — Generationenschnitt: foreign-born child of a foreign-born parent born after 31 Dec 1999 must register within one year [DE-AA]
- § § 25 StAG (pre-2024 naturalisation breaks chain; StARModG of 27 June 2024 is prospective only) [DE-EMB24]
- § Reichs- und Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz of 22 July 1913
Cases that need individual review
Needs individual review
Requirements
ALL of the following
the qualifying ancestor has a qualifying annexed territory only (flagged). If this fact is absent, the rule treats it as not applying (rather than asking for more information).
- flagged:
- true
the qualifying ancestor must have held german citizenship at the moment the applicant was born, passing it down the line by descent.
- required citizenship:
- german
Primary sources
- § Anschluss annulment (Moscow Declaration 1943; Austrian Staatsbürgerschafts-Überleitungsgesetz 1945, StGBl. Nr. 59/1945) — persons German only by the 1938 collective naturalisation reverted to Austrian citizenship in 1945 and cannot found a § 4 StAG descent chain
- § § 4 Staatsangehörigkeitsgesetz (StAG) — descent presupposes the ancestor held German citizenship other than by an unwound Nazi-era annexation
See how these rules apply to your family
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