Section 5 StAG: German citizenship by declaration

Who Section 5 may apply to

Every group requires birth after May 23, 1949, the day the Basic Law took effect. The Federal Office of Administration's information sheet describes these groups:

• Children of a German mother. Born before January 1, 1975 to a mother who was German and a father who was not, where the parents were married before the birth.
• Children of a German father born outside marriage. Born before July 1, 1993 to a German father and a non-German mother who were not married to each other, where paternity was acknowledged, or proceedings to establish it began, before the child turned 23.
• Children of mothers who lost citizenship by marriage. The mother lost German citizenship by marrying a foreign national before April 1, 1953, and the child was born after that loss to a non-German father.
• Children who lost citizenship through legitimation. Born before April 1, 1953 to a German mother and a non-German father who married after the birth but before April 1, 1953. Not every such legitimation actually caused a loss.
• Descendants. Anyone born after May 23, 1949 whose parent or earlier ancestor falls into one of the groups above.

Who is excluded

• People who acquired German citizenship another way after birth and later lost it again, for example by renouncing it or voluntarily acquiring another citizenship, and descendants born or adopted after that loss
• A child born abroad to a German parent who was also born abroad after December 31, 1999, where the child's birth has not been registered in Germany and can no longer be
• People sentenced to two years or more of imprisonment or youth detention, or subject to preventive detention, and people to whom other statutory exclusion grounds, such as security concerns, apply

How Section 5 differs from Article 116(2) and Section 15

Section 5 is not about persecution. It remedies rules that once stopped German citizenship passing through mothers, through marriages to foreign nationals, and to children born outside marriage. Article 116(2) and Section 15 StAG are the routes for families affected by Nazi persecution, and neither has a deadline.

All three routes are free of government fees. Average processing times are those published by German missions abroad in March 2026; individual cases vary widely.

Documents generally involved

• A copy of the applicant's current passport
• The applicant's birth certificate, and marriage certificate if married
• Birth and marriage certificates of the parents and, where relevant, the grandparents
• Proof of the German citizenship of the relevant parent or grandparent
• Adoption, divorce, paternity or name-change records where relevant
• A criminal record certificate from the country of residence, in the original, no older than six months and covering the whole country; for US residents, an FBI Identity History Summary

Documents must be originals or officially or notarially certified copies. Foreign public documents generally need an apostille, and foreign-language documents need a translation by a sworn translator. A birth certificate alone does not prove German citizenship.

How to file

The Federal Office of Administration's download package includes the declaration form (Vordruck_EER), used at any age, with legal representatives signing for children under 16; a supplement (Anlage_EER), needed only if no other citizenship procedure is already open with the Federal Office; and an Anlage_AV supplement for further ancestors.

The declaration can be sent directly to the Federal Office in Cologne or handed to the German embassy or consulate responsible, which forwards it. Only timely arrival at the Federal Office counts, so filing through a consulate close to the deadline carries a real risk.

Cost and timing

The procedure is free of charge. Costs for records, apostilles and translations are not reimbursed. German missions abroad list an average processing time of about 2 to 2.5 years for Section 5 declarations (March 2026). The 2031 deadline applies to when the declaration arrives, not to when it is decided.

Frequently asked questions

When is the Section 5 deadline?

The declaration must reach the Federal Office of Administration no later than August 19, 2031. Declarations that arrive later do not lead to citizenship. Handing the declaration to a German consulate is allowed, but only its arrival at the Federal Office counts.

Can grandchildren of a German mother use Section 5?

Section 5 covers descendants of eligible people, provided the descendant was born after May 23, 1949 and none of the exclusions applies. A grandchild of a German mother whose child was cut off before 1975 can therefore fall within it.

Do I have to give up my US citizenship?

No. Section 5 has no renunciation requirement, and since June 27, 2024 German law generally permits multiple citizenship.

Is a Section 5 declaration the same as naturalization?

No. It is acquisition by declaration, not a discretionary naturalization. There is no German language test, no residence requirement and no government fee. The Federal Office of Administration checks the conditions and issues a certificate.

My mother was German and I was born after 1974. Do I need Section 5?

Generally not. Since January 1, 1975, children of a German mother have acquired German citizenship at birth under the ordinary descent rules, so a person born after that date would usually look at confirming existing citizenship rather than declaring it.