The Reform of German Nationality Law with a Focus on Legal Issues Regarding Multiple Nationality

This dissertation focuses on the reform of German nationality law which entered into force on January 1st, 2000, paying special attention to legal issues regarding multiple nationality.The Citizenship Reform Act is compatible with all priniciples of constitutional and international law and as such to be supported without restriction whatsoever. The introduction of the ius soli principle as well as the increased acceptance of dual nationality resulting from the citizenship law reform are admissible under the German Basic Law. The same applies to the introduction of the optional model relating to German dual nationals (section 29 of the German Nationality Act) as well as to the rules on loss of nationality as a consequence thereof. In addition, the Citizenship Reform Act is compatible with Public International Law as well as with European Community Law.The optional model represents a compromise which was enforceable politically upon passing the nationality law reform. Difficulties thereof will presumably arise from the application of this regulation rather than its legal scope. At present reliable forecasts on this issue, as well as on the results of the so-called generation cut under section 4 para. 4 of the German Nationality Act, to be implemented not until 2018 to 2020, are not feasible.Recent experiences with the reformed regulations regarding naturalization have shown that certain difficulties arise from their practical application: The administrative practice in the German Federal States may be regarded as unsatisfactory since it considerably differs in many areas. This applies, in particular, to the procedure of evaluation if an applicant for naturalization has sufficient knowledge of the German language. The debate on the necessity of the so-called Regelanfrage (default enquiry) to the Authorities for the Protection of the Constitution, however, became superfluous after the entering into force of the Immigration Act of 2004. The need for new regulations, however, still exists for some questions concerning the pre-conditions of naturalization as well as the naturalization procedure, e.g. the definition of the applicant s habitual residence , the exceptions from the ability to earn his/her living, and the missing obligation of the naturalization authority to adhere to their assurance of naturalization if the factual or legal situations change. With regard to the newly introduced acquisition of German nationality by children of foreign parents born on German territory, problems like the acquisition of nationality by children of very young parents, or the temporary discontinuation of the legality of residence, were satisfactorily solved by the new Immigration Act of 2004. Recent experiences concerning this new mode of acquisiton by ius soli, especially in the light of the new tasks legislation put on the registrars, are favourable. The transitional regulation of section 40b of the Nationality Act, which provided for a limited claim to naturalization of young aliens not yet ten years of age, was accepted only reluctantly for various reasons. The transition of ethnic Germans within the meaning of section 116 of the German Basic Law into German nationality as of August 1st, 1999, as well as the legal acquisition of German nationality resulting from the issue of a special certificate by the Federal Administrative Office, replacing the former naturalization in each individual case, constituted an enormous relief to the workload of the naturalization authorities.Although this new citizenship law still does not accept double nationality as a default, the number of persons with a dual and multiple nationality living in Germany has increased considerably since the new nationality law came into force. In most countries dual citizenship becomes more and more accepted, especially since many countries in Western Europe have come to accept multiple nationality when naturalizing migrant workers. Although in certain areas multiple nationality may cause complications, these conflicts may be overcome by the conclusion of international agreements, ideally by multilateral treatments, at least, however, with bilateral treaties with the main states of origin. These agreements should generally aim at applying the law of the state where a dual national has his/her habitual residence, or which nationality is the effective one. This applies, in particular, to the legal subjects of military obligations and alternative service, diplomatic protection between both states of nationality, double taxation and aspects of private international law. Further issues comprise the exercise of political rights by dual nationals including voting and holding of political offices, loss and withdrawal of the secondary citizenship as well as protection of national minorities