Becoming German

5 years of lawful residence is the standard (§10 StAG). The 3-year fast-track ("Turbo-Einbürgerung") was repealed on 30 October 2025 — and courts have applied the new law even to fast-track applications filed before that date, so don't count on it. Rules may tighten further (the CDU is pushing for 8 years), so apply as soon as you're eligible.

No — but not because of Germany. Germany has allowed dual citizenship for all nationalities since June 2024; it's Indian law that automatically terminates your Indian citizenship the moment you naturalize elsewhere. You must surrender your Indian passport and get a renunciation certificate, after which the OCI card restores lifelong visa-free residence and work rights in India (but no voting, no public office, and restrictions on agricultural land).

Yes — this is new. Since January 2026, Germany is on Pakistan's official dual-nationality list (entry #20), so Pakistanis naturalizing in Germany may retain Pakistani citizenship. For people who already renounced Pakistani citizenship in the past, a reclaim process has been announced but the details were still pending at our last check.

In practice, no: Bangladesh lets citizens keep their nationality when acquiring citizenship of an EU country, which includes Germany. It's recommended to get a Dual Citizenship Certificate from the Ministry of Home Affairs (roughly 4–6 months processing) to document the status for NID, passport, and property matters — but confirm the current rules with the Special Branch before relying on this.

No — a §16b student permit doesn't qualify as the residence title you hold at application time. You must first switch to a qualifying title (e.g. §18a/§18b skilled worker, Blue Card, or Niederlassungserlaubnis). The good news: your study years still count in full toward the 5-year requirement once you've switched.

B1 in all four skills. Accepted proofs include Goethe-Zertifikat B1, telc Deutsch B1, ÖSD B1, or the DTZ (integration-course exam) with B1 in every skill. A German school-leaving certificate or a degree from a German-taught program waives the language proof entirely.

It's 33 multiple-choice questions and you need just 17 correct to pass — with practice, the pass rate is very high. The participation fee is 25 €. Holders of a German school-leaving certificate are exempt; a blanket "over 65 = exempt" rule you may read online is not in the statute, so ask your Behörde if age or illness makes the test difficult.

The fee is 255 € per adult, plus 51 € per minor child co-naturalized with a parent. Add 25 € for the citizenship test and roughly 150–230 € for a B1 exam if you don't already have a certificate. Fee reductions and installments are possible for low incomes at the authority's discretion.

Expect roughly 14 months as a national average — these are typical figures from application-tracking data, not guarantees. Berlin has been running around 8–14 months (online-only application), Munich closer to 17 months. If nothing happens for 3 months, an Untätigkeitsklage (inaction lawsuit, §75 VwGO) is a widely used remedy.

Yes: 3 years of residence instead of 5, provided you've been married for at least 2 years at the time of decision (§9 StAG). All other requirements — B1 German, the citizenship test, secure livelihood, and a clean record — still apply in full.