Dual citizenship: what applies in Germany since 2024?

Is dual citizenship allowed in Germany?

Yes. Since 27 June 2024, Germany has allowed dual citizenship for people from all countries. Anyone who is naturalized no longer has to give up their previous citizenship. Germans no longer lose their citizenship when they acquire a foreign one upon application. The basis is the Act to Modernise the Nationality Law of 22 March 2024 (BGBl. 2024 I Nr. 104).

Experts speak of multiple nationality: a person holds two or more citizenships at the same time. The law says citizenship. In everyday life people often say „Statesbürgerschaft“ or „Doppelpass“ (dual passport). The same thing is meant.

The changes do not have retroactive effect. Anyone who lost German citizenship before 27 June 2024 under the old law does not get it back automatically (Federal Office of Administration, Federal Foreign Office).

What changed on 27 June 2024?

Do you have to apply for dual citizenship?

No. There is no separate application or separate form for dual citizenship in Germany. You file a normal application for naturalization, usually under § 10 StAG. If your country of origin allows it, you keep your previous citizenship afterwards. Country of origin is the state whose citizenship you hold so far.

Naturalization means: you become a German citizen upon application. Responsible is the citizenship authority (often also called naturalization authority) for your place of residence. Usually this is the city or the district. There you also receive the application forms. Which office is exactly responsible you can find out, according to the BAMF, for example at your city or district administration.

This is how naturalization with dual citizenship works

1. Check the requirements. The same conditions apply as for any naturalization (see below).
2. Clarify the rules of the country of origin. Ask at the embassy or consulate of your country of origin: can you keep your citizenship? Do you need a permit beforehand?
3. File the application. You submit the application with your documents to the citizenship authority. The fee is 255 euros per person (§ 38 Abs. 2 StAG). Which proofs you need is shown by our checklist of documents for naturalization.
4. Receive the naturalization certificate. Before the handover you solemnly declare that you will respect the Basic Law and the laws of the Federal Republic of Germany and refrain from anything that could harm it. Children under 16 do not have to do so. With the handover of the certificate you are German. The certificate is to be handed over at a public naturalization ceremony (§ 16 StAG).
5. Apply for identity documents. You receive the German identity card and passport afterwards from the passport and identity-card authority of your place of residence (§ 19 Abs. 3 PassG, § 8 Abs. 1 PAuswG).

On the duration, read: How long does naturalization take after the application? Sometimes the authority does not decide for a long time. If there is no sufficient reason for this, you can as a rule file a court action at the earliest three months after the application (§ 75 VwGO). More on this in the guide Action for failure to act in naturalization.

Which requirements apply?

No special conditions apply to naturalization with dual citizenship. Under § 10 StAG you mainly need:

• five years of lawful ordinary residence in Germany (that is, you live here legally and permanently),
• an unlimited right of residence (for example a settlement permit), an EU Blue Card or another residence permit that the law allows (§ 10 Abs. 1 Satz 1 Nr. 2 StAG),
• German language skills at level B1,
• knowledge of the legal and social order, as a rule demonstrated through the naturalization test,
• a secure livelihood without benefits under SGB II (basic income support, formerly citizen's benefit) or SGB XII (social assistance), with statutory exceptions,
• no conviction for a criminal offence; certain minor penalties are disregarded (§ 12a StAG),
• the commitment to the free democratic basic order and to Germany's special historical responsibility,
• a clarified identity and citizenship.

Spouses and registered partners of Germans are to be naturalized already after three years of lawful residence, if the marriage or partnership has existed for two years. The other requirements apply to them as well (§ 9 StAG). The former naturalization after three years for special integration achievements no longer exists since 30 October 2025 (Turbo naturalization abolished: what applies now). All conditions in detail are explained on the page Requirements for naturalization.

Do you keep your previous citizenship?

That is decided by your country of origin under its own law, because Germany no longer requires the surrender. Some states allow a second citizenship. In others, your own citizenship is lost automatically when you acquire a foreign one, in some cases only without prior permission. Therefore clarify this before naturalization at the consulate of your country of origin. The Federal Foreign Office also points this out.

In practice, most of the newly naturalized afterwards hold two citizenships. The Mediendienst Integration surveyed the 50 largest cities on this in May 2026. In the cities with data, the share was 85 to 98 percent. Exceptions are above all stateless persons and people from states that do not allow dual citizenship, such as India (Mediendienst Integration, as of 2 June 2026).

Which countries allow dual citizenship?

That differs from state to state. Turkey, Switzerland and the USA allow a further citizenship. Austria permits it on acquisition upon application only with prior authorization, India not at all. The table is not a complete list and does not replace information from the respective state. Rules can change and often have exceptions, for example for minors.

Dual citizenship Turkey and Germany: what applies?

Turkish citizens can be naturalized in Germany since 27 June 2024 without giving up Turkish citizenship. The Turkish Citizenship Law No. 5901 expressly recognizes multiple nationality (Art. 3 and 44). It does not provide for automatic loss through naturalization abroad (Art. 23).

Anyone who previously gave up Turkish citizenship with an exit permit („çıkma izni“) can regain it under Turkish law. The Ministry of the Interior decides on this. A minimum period of residence in Turkey is not required for it. However, no reasons of national security may stand in the way (Art. 13).

Anyone who was Turkish by birth and left with permission can obtain the „Mavi Kart“ (Blue Card) upon application. With it the person retains many rights of Turkish citizens, but not the right to vote (Art. 28).

Under German law, the re-acquisition of Turkish citizenship no longer leads to loss of the German one since 27 June 2024. If you reacquired Turkish citizenship even earlier, the old law still applied. Whether you lost German citizenship at that time depends on the individual case. In case of doubt, the citizenship authority determines, upon application, in a binding manner whether you are German. For this you must credibly show a legitimate interest (§ 30 StAG). The fee is 51 euros (§ 38 Abs. 2 StAG).

What applies to EU citizens and Swiss nationals?

EU citizens and Swiss nationals could keep their citizenship on naturalization in Germany already since 28 August 2007. Since 27 June 2024 this applies to everyone. However, whether your home state accepts dual citizenship is still governed by its own law. Switzerland has allowed it since 1992. Austria requires prior authorization (see table above).

For Swiss nationals, the residence permit under the Agreement on the Free Movement of Persons between the EU and Switzerland suffices as the right of residence (§ 10 Abs. 1 Satz 1 Nr. 2 StAG).

What does naturalization change for EU citizens? In district and municipal elections you may already vote today (Art. 28 Abs. 1 Satz 3 GG). In the Bundestag election, only Germans are entitled to vote (§ 12 BWahlG). You obtain this right to vote with naturalization, if you meet the other conditions, such as the minimum age of 18 years.

May Germans acquire a second citizenship?

Yes. Since 27 June 2024, Germans no longer lose their citizenship when they acquire a foreign citizenship upon application. A retention permit is no longer necessary. Whether the other state naturalizes you without your giving up German citizenship is decided solely by that state.

Today § 17 Abs. 1 StAG names only three grounds for loss any more:

• renunciation (§ 26 StAG),
• entry into foreign armed forces or participation in combat operations of a terrorist organization abroad (§ 28 StAG),
• the withdrawal of an unlawful administrative act, such as a naturalization obtained through deception (§ 35 StAG).

The acquisition of a foreign citizenship is no longer one of them. Paragraph 2 additionally regulates special cases involving children, for example when a paternity ceases retroactively.

Previously it was different: anyone who acquired a foreign citizenship upon application as a rule lost the German one, except with a retention permit. Such a loss remains effective.

• Keep the retention certificate: the Federal Office of Administration recommends keeping a retention certificate handed over up to 26 June 2024 permanently, together with the certificate of the other citizenship. It proves that you remained German at that time.
• Re-naturalization: former Germans who live abroad can be re-naturalized under § 13 StAG. The authority decides at its discretion: it weighs the circumstances; there is no firm entitlement. According to the Federal Foreign Office, facilitated requirements apply if close ties to Germany still exist. Anyone who lives in Germany can be naturalized under the general rules, above all under § 10 StAG.

What citizenship do children have?

A child acquires German citizenship at birth as a rule if one parent is German (§ 4 Abs. 1 StAG). Children of foreign parents become German through birth in Germany if one parent has lived here lawfully for five years. That parent also needs an unlimited right of residence (§ 4 Abs. 3 StAG). Germany no longer requires a decision between the citizenships.

Whether the child additionally acquires the citizenship of the other parent or of both parents is regulated by the respective other state. An exception applies to birth abroad. It concerns children whose German parent was born abroad after 31 December 1999 and lives there. These children as a rule become German only if, within one year of the birth, the registration in the German birth register is applied for (§ 4 Abs. 4 StAG).

Option obligation: abolished since 27 June 2024

The option obligation meant: certain children of foreign parents born in Germany had to decide on one citizenship as young adults. This obligation no longer exists since 27 June 2024 (§ 29 StAG repealed). Anyone who previously received a letter on the option obligation and whose deadline was still running no longer has to do anything, according to the Federal Foreign Office.

Co-naturalization of children

Anyone who is naturalized can have spouses or registered partners and minor children co-naturalized. This is also possible if they have not yet lived in Germany for five years. The other requirements apply in principle to them as well (§ 10 Abs. 2 StAG). For a co-naturalized minor child without its own income, the fee is 51 euros instead of 255 euros (§ 38 Abs. 2 StAG). Children under 16 do not have to make a commitment to the free democratic basic order and do not have to take a naturalization test (§ 10 Abs. 1 Satz 2 StAG). All fees at a glance you will find in the guide Costs of naturalization.

What does dual citizenship mean in everyday life?

In Germany you are German within the meaning of the law (§ 1 StAG). Rules for Germans apply to you as well, for example the right to vote in the Bundestag election, the obligation to hold an identity document and the passport obligation. In the other state its laws apply, for example for passports, elections or military service. Anyone who voluntarily enters the other state's army without consent may lose German citizenship (§ 28 StAG).

Two passports: what applies for identity documents and travel?

With two citizenships you may in principle hold passports of both states. As a German you must, from the age of 16, hold a valid identity card if you are registered in Germany. A valid German passport likewise suffices (§ 1 PAuswG). Several German passports at the same time are permitted only exceptionally (§ 1 Abs. 3 PassG).

When you leave Germany or enter Germany, you must, as a German, carry a valid German passport (§ 1 Abs. 1 PassG). A regulation can allow exceptions, for example other official identity documents as a passport substitute (§ 2 PassG). Other states, too, can require that you travel with their passport. The USA expressly requires this of US citizens.

Military service in the other state

If you, as a German, voluntarily enter the armed forces of another state whose citizenship you also hold, you lose German citizenship. This applies if there is no consent from the Federal Ministry of Defence (§ 28 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 StAG). It does not apply to minors and not if an intergovernmental treaty permits the entry (§ 28 Abs. 2 StAG).

According to the Federal Foreign Office, the rule has also not applied since 6 July 2011 to voluntary service in the armed forces of EU, NATO and EFTA states as well as Australia, New Zealand, Israel and the Republic of Korea. Turkey too can revoke its citizenship if someone serves voluntarily in a foreign army without permission (Art. 29 Law No. 5901).

Can you give up dual citizenship again?

Yes, but each state regulates this for its own citizenship itself. You can renounce German citizenship only if you hold several citizenships. The renunciation must be declared in writing, requires a permit and is free of charge (§ 26 StAG, § 38 Abs. 3 StAG). How you give up a foreign citizenship is regulated by the other state.

• The renunciation becomes effective only with the handover of the renunciation certificate (§ 26 Abs. 3 StAG).
• Responsible is the citizenship authority. If you live abroad, the Federal Office of Administration is responsible (Federal Foreign Office).
• The permit is refused for example for civil servants, judges and soldiers of the Bundeswehr, as long as their service relationship exists. Persons liable for military service need a declaration from the Ministry of Defence that there are no objections. These hurdles cease to apply, among other things, if you have had your ordinary residence abroad for at least ten years (§ 26 Abs. 2 StAG).
• Example Turkey: leaving is possible with permission of the Ministry of the Interior. For this you must, among other things, be of age and have another citizenship or be likely to obtain one. The leaving becomes effective with the handover of the exit certificate against signature (Art. 25 to 27 Law No. 5901).

Frequently asked questions

Rechtsanwalt Nihat Kaygalak, LL.M.

Responsible for the content of Mein Deutscher Pass. Admitted as a lawyer (Rechtsanwalt) since 2007, member of the Düsseldorf Bar Association (Rechtsanwaltskammer Düsseldorf), firm in Neuss. You can verify the admission in the nationwide official register of lawyers.

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