Applying for German Citizenship under Article 116
This page provides information on the eligibility for and documents required to apply for German citizenship under the Article 116 provision. Please read the overview page first which provides general information.
Who is eligible?
Article 116 (2) GG of German Basic Law (Grundgesetz) states that:
persons who were actually “deprived” of their German citizenship by the National Socialists between 1933 and 1945 on political, racial or religious grounds are entitled to naturalization.
This means that the persons had been German citizens and were deprived of this citizenship in the National Socialist era OR that a naturalization that had taken place between 1918 and 1933 was revoked.
What does “deprived” mean?
Being deprived means persons who either:
lost their German citizenship automatically pursuant to Section 2 of the 11th Decree Implementing the Reich Citizens Act of 25 November 1941 [this affected all German citizens of the Jewish faith who had their permanent residence abroad when the regulation entered into force on 27 November 1941 or later] OR
were deprived on an individual basis under the Act on Revocation of Naturalizations and Deprivation of German Citizenship of 14 July 1933 [Individual cases of deprivation of German citizenship were published in the Reich Law Gazette].
“ARTICLE 116 (2)
Former German citizens who between 30 January 1933 and 8 May 1945 were deprived of their German 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 become residents of Germany after 8 May and not expressed a contrary will
”
Descendants
You will need to complete and sign an application form for naturalisation under Article 116 (2) of the German Basic Law - either the form for adults or the form for persons under 16 years. You will also need to complete the annex to the form about your ancestors (unless you personally were deprived of your German citizenship between 1933 and 1945).
You will also need to provide evidence that the eligibility criteria are met. As every case is slightly different and may therefore require different documentation, there is no fixed list of documents to be submitted. The following documents are however, essential. For each you must provide one set of certified and one set of plain photocopies.
| Birth certificate (full unabridged version) and, if applicable, marriage certificate for each applicant |
| Birth and marriage certificate of your parent/grandparent who was deprived of German citizenship |
| Your parent’s/grandparent’s certificate of naturalisation in the UK or another country, if applicable |
| Old German passports (if still available) or other evidence of former German citizenship |
| If applicable, documents relating to compensation for persecution (including pensions) |
| All documents proving the link between the applicant and the parent/grandparent on whom the application is based |
Please note also:
You can submit any other documents you think may be relevant.
If any member of your family has already applied for restoration of German citizenship or had their citizenship restored, please provide his/her name, date of birth, file number and the name of the diplomatic mission or authority that is handling/handled the case.
If several members of a family are applying on the basis of the same parent/grandparent, the applications can be submitted together and the documents relating to that parent/grandparent (one set of certified and one set of plain photocopies) need only be provided once.
Anyone who after being deprived of their German citizenship acquired a foreign citizenship by application is entitled to have their German citizenship restored. This also applies to their descendants.
Such persons and their descendants have been entitled to naturalization by the GG (Grundgesetz) since 24 May 1949.
A descendant born to a parent who was deprived of German citizenship and before the parent's citizenship was restored also has a claim under Article 116 (2) of the Basic Law.
Each descendant has an individual claim, subject to eligibility. It is thus possible for grandchildren to apply, even if their parents decide not to. Please note however, that children younger than 16 require parental consent (see no. 2 and 6 on the application form).