Up to 98% of Germany's 332,500 New Citizens Kept Original Nationality After 2024 Reform
Updated
Updated · DW (English) · Jun 3
Up to 98% of Germany's 332,500 New Citizens Kept Original Nationality After 2024 Reform
3 articles · Updated · DW (English) · Jun 3
Summary
85% to 98% of people naturalized in German cities in 2025 kept their original nationality, showing the immediate effect of the 2024 dual-citizenship reform.
More than 300,000 people were granted German citizenship last year, with Syrians the largest group, followed by citizens of Turkey, Afghanistan, Iran and Russia.
About 189,000 new naturalization applications were filed in 2025, down roughly 10% from 2024, but the earlier surge still left heavy backlogs and long waits.
36,100 applications were recorded in Berlin and 17,800 in Munich; more than 40,000 cases were still pending in Munich at the start of May.
Germany now has 3.6 million dual citizens, nearly 70% of them holding another European nationality, after rules cut residency requirements to five years from eight.