German citizenship application processing times

You cannot become German just by being married to a German. The usual time living in Germany requiremets apply even then. Do you speak German? And are you prepared to renounce your non-EU citizenship(s) when you become German?

Yes, I qualify by the naturalization rules. I have lived here for three years and soon will be giving B1 exam.

I am just asking for citizenship application processing times at Ausländerbehörde in this forum post.

I doubt anyone can give a good assessment of such things because it is behind the scene workings in offices and things constantly change. Everywhere is backlogged due to Covid and there are still shortages of civil service workers. And with the rules for naturalization being set to be relaxed, there will very likely be an avalanche of new applications.

The other factor is that you are NOT given a choice of where to apply. You have to apply according to where you reside. Or do think it would be worth it to move from say Hamburg to Berlin just on the grounds that their office might process such a thing a bit faster? One living in Hamburg certainly can't apply in Berlin or Düsseldorf, only where they live.

Another thing is that nobody has a given right to naturalization. The tone of your comments sound rather presumptuous. Having met the residency requirements and passing the B1 German and citizenship tests are just minimal necessities for consideration. That is just the start. They look at the whole situation. What one's scores were on the mentioned tests, their financial, living and work situation? Have they had any criminal activity? Have they properly filed and paid taxes and social security obligations etc.? Do they own property, have assets - or more debts. One with long term residency for example can be getting social benefits like unemployment - but this disqualifies them for citizenship. In the end, about half of applicants are rejected - despite having the basic requirements.

Naturalization usually takes a good year to process and anything missing from the documentation will slow it down. And if something is missing, they don't somehow process everything and then when the last document arrives finish the process. They wait until EVERYTHING is given in and only then start to do anything. And they don't chase after you to get missing documents, it's up to you to keep informed on what is missing and see that they get it and that it’s what is actually needed.

I can say that when I took the B1 language test, I was told  that the results would be given directly to the office processing my naturalization application. I thought that made sense so that they would know it is legit and not just someone showing up with a falsified document. I lost a good 4 months or more because they were waiting for me to show up and present the certificate. And they never would have notified me, I found out by inquiring on the status of my application.

@beppi

Hey, There is a new law which comes in effect in April 2024. You are then allowed a dual citizenship if you pass certain criteria.

Audrey

Hi.

Regarding process time, my experience is a disaster and I think I'm not the only one.

I believed having fulfilled all criteria with all requested documents submitted more than 2 years ago. Then in summer 2022, I received a letter from Ausländeramt asking me to submit again the latest income statements, which I did in early 2023.  After 1 year of no response, I sent them a letter early this year asking for the progress  Again, no response. So, in March this year, I sent them again a letter (this time a registered letter to make sure they had received it). Total silence.

2 weeks ago, I sent a complaint message online on the official website . I plan to do that again and again throughout this summer.

I have been waiting for their reply for 18 months!

If they do not reply, do you think it would help to hire a lawyer to handle the case?

I haven’t seen recent statistic but a few years back only 50% of citizenship applications were approved – from what I understand, having all of the minimal requirements. The thing is that they weigh all of one’s information. If one has a strong, reliable income and no debts, then something like having passed but barely on the citizenship test and/or B1 German test might still mean acceptance. But having done poorly on them and having an income or job that is nominally acceptable and or legal conflicts even though not serious enough to disqualify one outright, they might not be given the benefit of the doubt.

Nobody has a given right to citizenship no matter what their test scores or income might be. There is a minimal residency requirement but having lived even longer is a plus. Having very good scores on the test mentioned rather than barely passing is a plus. Having a German spouse is a plus. Having highly demanded skills is a plus.

I got citizenship in 2019 and it took around 18 months. Today there are still delays in many bureaucratic matters due to a lack of qualified personnel after the Covid crisis. Add to that the Ukrainian conflict, Brexit and a few other factors and of course that the new immigration rules have made many more people suddenly eligible to apply means that there is likely an unprecedented number of applicants to be processed. I can well imagine that 2 years is kind of the present norm in some municipalities.

On the other hand, it is appropriate to occasionally ask about one’s application status at least to confirm that there are no documents missing.

I doubt hiring a lawyer will speed anything up. Usually a waste of money unless there is a conflict about a specific issue.

    @beppi
Hey, There is a new law which comes in effect in April 2024. You are then allowed a dual citizenship if you pass certain criteria.
Audrey
   

    -@Audrey58

This is now in effect and Beppi and others here are aware of it. The subject has been mentioned multiple times on this site. There are many changes beyond just being able to retain one's original citizenship - like that the standard residency requirement has dropped from 8 years to just 5. I suspect this will only lengthen the processing time for the near future as officials must get used to the new system and there are suddenly many more people now theoretically eligible.

@Pat87 German foreigners' offices ("Ausländeramt") are known to be overworked, inefficient and difficult to deal with. Yet there are regional differences, with big cities (where more foreigners live) more onerous than smaller ones or rural areas. So maybe you can move, to get into the responsibility of a better one?

Other than that, there is nothing you can do but wait (and occasionally ask for the status, even if no reply). A lawyer would not help.