German Citizenship by Descent

Children born to married parents before January 1, 1975

If you were born before this date to married parents, you can only inherit German citizenship from your father.

Children born to married parents on or after January 1, 1975

If you were born on or after that date, you inherit citizenship from either parent equally, meaning you could inherit citizenship from either a German father or mother.

Children born to unmarried parents

• If your parents were not married at the time of your birth and your mother was the German citizen, you are eligible regardless of when you were born.
• If your father was the German citizen, birth date is again determinative: children born before July 1, 1993 did not inherit citizenship through an unmarried German father.
• Children born on or after that date may qualify through either parent.

Citizenship through a grandparent

It is possible to claim German citizenship through a grandparent, but only if citizenship passed uninterrupted down the line, e.g. from grandparent to parent, and from parent to you. If the chain was broken at any point (for instance, because your parent was ineligible under the laws in effect at the time of their birth, or because your parent became a citizen of another country before your birth), then citizenship did not pass to you through that line. This is one of the most common points of confusion we see, and one of the most important things to assess early.

How Far Back Can German Citizenship by Descent Go?

In theory, German citizenship by descent has no generational limit. If citizenship passed uninterrupted from each ancestor to the next child under the laws in effect at the time of each birth, it can travel through great-grandparents, great-great-grandparents, and beyond. There is no cutoff point built into German law that says citizenship expires after a certain number of generations.

In practice, the further back the line goes, the more likely it is that a break occurred somewhere, e.g. by a mother who couldn't pass citizenship before 1975, an unmarried father before 1993, a naturalization that severed the chain, or by a pre-1904 emigration from Germany. But we have seen qualifying lines that stretch back further than clients ever expected. The only way to know is to look.

Descendants of Nazi-era persecution

Under Article 116(2) of the German Basic Law, persons who were stripped of their German citizenship by the Nazi regime (and their descendants) are entitled to reclaim it. This includes Jewish Germans who fled persecution between January 30, 1933 and May 8, 1945, as well as those who were formally denaturalized by the regime. Citizenship in this category is reclaimed through a declaration process and does not require renunciation of your existing citizenship.

Descendants affected by gender discrimination

Prior to 1975, German citizenship law treated men and women unequally in ways that cut off citizenship for many descendants. You may qualify to reclaim citizenship on this basis if any of the following apply to your family history:

• You were born before 1975 to a German mother and a foreign father and did not receive citizenship at birth.
• Your German mother lost her citizenship upon marrying a foreign national before your birth.
• You were born out of wedlock to a German mother who later married a non-German father, causing you to lose citizenship.
• Or you are a descendant of any person in the above circumstances.

Legislation passed in August 2021 expanded access to citizenship restoration for those affected by gender-based discrimination, and we assess each case against both the original law and the expanded provisions.