Can victims of the NS-terror apply for a German passport?

Persecutees of the Nazi regime who were forcibly deprived of their German citizenship and their descendants can now be naturalized again in Germany. A decision by the Federal Constitutional Court allows more people to apply for citizenship.

Victims of persecution by the Nazi regime who were deprived of their German citizenship for political, racial or religious reasons between 30 January 1933 and 8 May 1945 are subject to special regulations on naturalization. These persons and their descendants are entitled to naturalization in accordance with Article 116 paragraph 2 sentence 1 of the Basic Law.

The Fourth Act Amending the Citizenship Act, which came into force on 20 August 2021, created a new legal entitlement to naturalization for persons who lost their German citizenship as a result of National Socialist persecution or who were denied German citizenship and who are not already entitled to naturalization under Article 116 (2) of the Basic Law (Section 15 of the Citizenship Act). This entitlement to naturalization also applies to all descendants of these persons.

According to Section 15 of the Citizenship Act, persons who gave up, lost or did not receive German citizenship between 30 January 1933 and 8 May 1945 for political, racial or religious reasons are entitled to naturalization:

1. People who surrendered or lost their German citizenship prior to 26 February 1955, for example through acquisition of foreign citizenship on application, release on application or marriage with a foreigner
2. People who were excluded from the legal acquisition of German citizenship through marriage, legitimisation or collective naturalisation of persons of German ethnic origin
3. People who were not naturalised following application or who were generally excluded from naturalisation that would otherwise have been possible upon application, or
4. People who surrendered or lost their habitual abode in Germany if this was established prior to 30 January 1933 or, in the case of children, also after this date.

The same right as above apply for the descendents. Decendents are also

• children born in wedlock prior to 1 April 1953 to mothers who were forcibly deprived of their German nationality and foreign fathers
• and children born out of wedlock prior to 1 July 1993 to fathers who were forcibly deprived of their German nationality and foreign mothers.