The record number of people becoming citizens has been reached.
Over the past twenty years, there's been an ongoing argument concerning the number of individuals who have become German citizens. This figure reached an all-time high the previous year. Only a handful of countries account for half of these recent naturalizations, with one country being exceptional.
According to the Federal Statistical Office, more people were given German citizenship in 2023 than we've seen since records started being kept in 2000. Naturalizations jumped by 19% compared to the prior year, following a 28% increase the previous year. There were approximately 200,100 foreigners who obtained German citizenship in 2023.
People from 157 distinct nationalities became German citizens in 2023. The five most common nationalities were Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Romania, and Afghanistan. These countries together represented more than 50% of all naturalizations. The people being naturalized were generally younger, at an average age of 29.3 years old, compared to the total population.
Women represented 45% fewer naturalized persons than in the general population.
Syrian nationals made up the biggest group of those naturalized. They accounted for more than a third of all naturalizations. The number of Syrian nationals getting naturalized rose by 56% compared to the previous year. Previously, this number had increased more than twofold compared to the year before, and in 2021 it had even risen by a factor of seven.
"The high number of naturalizations for Syrians is partially due to the high rate of Syrian asylum seekers from 2014 to 2016. These asylum seekers are now meeting the requirements for naturalization more often, particularly in terms of language skills and minimum residence duration," said the Federal Office.
Last year, the number of naturalizations for Iraqi nationals climbed by 57%, while the number of naturalizations for Turkish nationals declined by 25%. The number of naturalizations for Romanian nationals increased by 8%, and the number of naturalizations for Afghan nationals increased by 55%.
The number of naturalizations for Ukrainian nationals climbed by 6% to 5,900, up from 2021 to 2022, when it almost tripled from 900 to 5,600 in connection with the Russian attack. Ukrainian naturalizations accounted for 3% of all naturalizations in 2023.
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The countries with the highest number of recent naturalizations, accounting for over half of all cases, include Turkey, Syria, Iraq, Romania, and Afghanistan. Despite a decrease in naturalizations for Turkish nationals, the number for Iraqi nationals increased significantly, and so did the number for Afghan nationals. Additionally, the number of naturalizations for Ukrainian nationals also saw an increase, reaching 5,900 in 2023, following the Russian attack on Ukraine.
Source: www.ntv.de
