<It is still possible for descendants of Germans to reacquire German
nationality. Former German citizens or their descendants who were
deprived of their German nationality by the National Socialist
government can apply for re-naturalisation under Art. 116 (2) of the
German Basic Law.
Article 116 par. 2 of the Basic Law (Grundgesetz) reads:
'Former German citizens who between January 30, 1933 and May 8, 1945
were deprived of their citizenship on political, racial, or religious
grounds, and their descendants, shall on application have their
citizenship restored. They shall be deemed never to have been deprived
of their citizenship if they have established their domicile in
Germany after May 8, 1945 and have not expressed a contrary
intention.'
The above mentioned group of people mainly includes German Jews and
members of the Communist or Social Democratic Parties.
The situation between 1933 and 1945:
Between January 30, 1933 and May 8, 1945 there were basically two laws
pertaining to the loss of German citizenship.
With the 'Law on the Revocation of Naturalizations and the Deprivation
of the German Citizenship' of July 14, 1933, some persons were
deprived of their German citizenship individually. Their names were
listed in the Reich Law Gazette ('Reichsgesetzblatt') and with the
publication of the particular Reichsgesetzblatt they lost their German
citizenship.
The main group of former German citizens, however, lost their
citizenship with the 'Eleventh Decree to the Law on the Citizenship of
the Reich' of November 25, 1941. This stipulated that Jews living
outside Germany could not be German citizens. This mainly affected
Jews who had left Germany in the years before or shortly after the
beginning of the Second World War.
What does this mean for you?
Whoever lost his/her German citizenship due to either of these two
regulations, is entitled to (re-)naturalization according to Article
116 par. 2 of the Basic Law. This applies also to his/her descendants.
The process takes at least one year. The more documents that you can
provide, the quicker the process is. If names have changed or been
altered you should make this clear on your application. The removal
for example of a German accent or a change to the spelling of a name
need to be mentioned.
The application is free of charge. The procedure is to make a personal
appointment at the German embassy.
Documents required are
Your birth certificate.
Your passport
Your American certificat of naturalisation.
Your parents’ birth certificate.
Your parents’marriage certificate
Any other documents relating you or your family to Germany which still
may be in your possession (e.g old German passports, ID’s, school
reports, etc).
Your marriage certificate.
The address of the German Embassy is as follows:
German Embassy
4645 Reservoir Road NW
Washington, DC, 20007-1998
(202) 298-4000
In addition there are nine German missions. You can find the one
closest to you by following the link given below.
A new nationality law came into effect on 1 January 2000. The main
change has been the granting of citizenship to people born in Germany.
This brings Germany into line with most other European countries. >
<Additional links. >
<German embassy>
<http://www.germany-info.org/relaunch/info/consular_services/citizenship/persecuted.html>
<Application for naturalization.>
<http://www.germany-info.org/relaunch/info/consular_services/citizenship/application2.html>
<Finding the location of your closest German mission.>
<http://www.germany-info.org/relaunch/info/consular_services/consular_services.html>
<Reform of Germany’s citizenship and nationality law.>
<http://www.german-embassy.org.uk/reform_of_germany_s_citizenshi.html>
<Search strategy:>
<german embassy us>
<://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=German+embassy+us>
<Hope this helps.> |
Clarification of Answer by
belindalevez-ga
on
31 Oct 2002 08:24 PST
<Each application for German citizenship is individually assessed on
the information provided by the applicant. If your grandparents were
jews, then you could argue that they were deprived of their
citizenship through the law passed on 25 November 1941. However if
your grandparents voluntarily applied for U.S. citizenship then they
would have lost their German citizenship.
The article ‘Whose Fatherland’ says that German citizen law dates from
1913 and is based on the legal principle of jus sanguinis, or "blood
law," parentage and ethnicity determine German nationality, not place
of birth. A descendant of Germans stranded in Russia since the 18th
century is considered a German, for example, while a Slav who was born
in Munich is not.
The council of Europe website states ‘Since 1993, stricter tests have
been used to prove German origin. Persons born after 31 December 1923
must: be descended from German citizens or from persons of German
stock; have been introduced by their families to the German language
and to German education and culture; and have declared their German
nationality in accordance with the law of their country of residence.
At present, particular attention is paid to linguistic aptitude. Tests
form part of the admission procedure, and the authorities are planning
to make the whole procedure faster for those who have a good knowledge
of German.’
The only way to get a definitive answer about your entitlement to
German nationality is to apply to the German embassy for your case to
be considered.>
<Additional links:>
<German citizenship law.>
<http://www.iuscomp.org/gla/statutes/StAG.htm#I>
<German citizenship – who is a German citizen?>
<http://www.germanemb.org.il/consular/homcit.htm>
<Whose fatherland?>
<http://www.time.com/time/magazine/intl/article/0,9171,1107990125-19787,00.html>
<Repatriation.>
<http://www.social.coe.int/en/cohesion/action/publi/migrants/repatpol.htm>
<Hope this helps.>
|
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