Joint naturalisation with a foreign spouse or civil partner

For you and your foreign-national partner, we assess whether two independent entitlements or joint naturalisation provide the appropriate route together. § 10 paragraph 2 StAG allows a spouse or registered civil partner to be naturalised alongside the other partner even if they have lived in Germany for less than five years. The provision facilitates joint naturalisation, but does not replace the personal requirements that the partner being included must meet.

We first assess whether each person already has an independent entitlement under § 10 paragraph 1 StAG. Anyone who meets the general five-year residence requirement and all the other conditions does not need to be included in a partner’s naturalisation in order to qualify. Nevertheless, two independent procedures can be prepared together and coordinated organisationally.

Naturalisation alongside a partner is particularly important where one person has lived in Germany for longer and the other joined them later. If the person who has lived here longer meets the requirements for naturalisation, their partner may receive a concession on the residence period under § 10 paragraph 2. A shared date of arrival is therefore not required. However, the actual length and lawfulness of each person’s residence must still be established.

The provision covers spouses and registered civil partners. An unmarried relationship is insufficient, even if the couple have lived together for a long time or have children together. This does not mean that unmarried people cannot be naturalised. However, they must qualify through their own legal route; the special partner provision in § 10 paragraph 2 cannot be extended solely because their living circumstances are comparable.

For foreign marriages and registered partnerships, we examine their validity within the German legal framework. A foreign registered partnership is not assessed solely by its name. What matters is its recognition by the state and its legal arrangements, particularly the binding nature of mutual obligations.

The actual continuation of a marital or civil partnership relationship also matters. A merely formal union does not serve the purpose of promoting family cohesion through a shared citizenship. Different places of residence may be explained by work or family circumstances; permanent separation, however, may change the basis for the concession. Where circumstances are unclear, we set out the actual living arrangements.

§ 10 paragraph 2 itself does not prescribe a fixed four-year period. It permits naturalisation alongside a partner even though five years have not yet been completed. To guide the exercise of discretion, the Federal Ministry of the Interior’s application guidance generally provides for four years of residence in Germany and two years of living in a marital or civil partnership relationship for spouses and registered civil partners. These are standard administrative benchmarks, not an additional period expressly stated in the legislation.

This distinction matters when explaining the basis for an application. The authority must not act as though paragraph 2 contains no family-based concession at all. Conversely, the absence of a minimum number in the legislation does not mean that any arbitrarily short period of residence must suffice. Integration and the specific family circumstances may be taken into account in the discretionary decision. Departures from the normal case require sound reasons based on the individual circumstances.

The reduction of the general naturalisation period to five years did not automatically reduce the standard administrative benchmark for naturalisation alongside a spouse to three years. Nor do particularly strong language skills, by themselves, create a new general three-year rule. § 10 paragraph 3 has since been repealed. The continuing three-year rule in § 9 concerns a different situation: marriage to a partner who is already German.

Naturalisation alongside a partner primarily provides a concession on the residence period. Both people’s identity and previous citizenship must be established. Each person must also have suitable current residence status. If one partner holds a permanent settlement permit and the other holds a residence title excluded under § 10, the permanent settlement permit does not transfer to the other partner.

The language requirements are also personal. One partner cannot demonstrate sufficient German language skills on behalf of the other. Reliable communication with authorities within the family is not enough for this purpose. B1 is generally the relevant level unless a statutory exception applies. The same applies to knowledge of the legal and social system and the personal declarations of commitment.

Where illness or disability is involved, we assess the statutory concessions for the person concerned. One partner’s illness does not automatically exempt the other. Conversely, a valid exception should not be disregarded because both people wish to be naturalised together. Individual assessment remains central even in a family procedure that is coordinated organisationally.

The law does not require each spouse to have their own employment contract. If reliable income covers the relevant family needs, livelihood can also be secured within the marriage. What matters is the money actually available and the maintenance obligations. Someone caring for children or relatives is therefore not excluded from naturalisation alongside a partner simply because they have no employment income of their own.

Conversely, a single month of high earnings does not automatically demonstrate sustainable long-term finances. Fixed-term employment, variable working hours or self-employment may require a broader assessment. Income is not the only relevant factor: housing costs, health insurance and existing maintenance obligations also matter. We compile this information clearly for the shared household.

Where benefits under SGB II or SGB XII are received, the expressly defined exceptions must be considered. One concerns current full-time employment where the person has worked full-time for at least 20 of the preceding 24 months. Another may apply to a spouse or registered civil partner who lives in a family relationship with the person employed on that basis and a minor child. The specific requirements for the exception must also be demonstrated in a joint application.

The SGB II benefit has been called Grundsicherungsgeld since 1 July 2026; authorities may continue to use the term Bürgergeld until the end of 2026. The name does not change the StAG’s reference to SGB II and SGB XII. The official SGB II compilation contains the amendment and the transitional provision. For detailed questions, the article on social benefits explains the individual categories of cases.

We expressly request joint naturalisation and establish its connection to the principal partner's proceedings. This includes identifying both applications, the legal family relationship and the wish for coordinated processing. Merely mentioning a spouse in a mandatory field about family members is not a reliable expression of that spouse’s own wish to acquire citizenship.

If only one person has an outstanding enquiry, we assess before a separate decision whether both have independent entitlements or still need the joint basis. This determines whether separate decisions can be made without difficulty or might affect the remaining procedure. Our planning considers legal dependencies as well as the preferred joint handover date.

After one partner is naturalised, § 9 StAG may in principle become relevant to the other. However, this does not automatically create a new entitlement under the three-year rule the following day. In particular, the relevant period of marriage to a German citizen and the other requirements must be met. The previous duration of a marriage between two foreign nationals cannot be counted as the corresponding period without examination.

If the other partner has meanwhile completed five years of lawful residence in Germany in their own right, an independent entitlement under § 10 may be the simpler legal starting point. If that period has not yet been completed, it is necessary to assess whether an application for inclusion submitted in time can still proceed on a sound basis or whether another route is needed. The article on spouses of German citizens explains the requirements of § 9 separately.

If the marital relationship ends permanently during proceedings, we reassess the basis for joint naturalisation. A previously shared household calculation may also be out of date. If the person concerned has meanwhile acquired an independent entitlement, the procedure can be considered further on that basis. Separation does not automatically end all possibilities of naturalisation.

Personal obstacles affecting one partner are not indiscriminately attributed to the other. A criminal-law issue concerning one person initially relates to that person’s own requirements. However, it may have an indirect effect if that person is intended to provide the basis for the other’s inclusion and cannot be naturalised. The other partner then needs a sound independent basis. The distinction between individual assessment and legal dependence is essential.

Minor children can also be included in the family’s planning. Their residence periods, age and legal representation must be considered separately. In relation to livelihood, the BMI application guidance also favours a child being naturalised alongside a parent in certain circumstances: if the child lives in a family relationship with a parent who benefits from the spouse exception, this requirement is deemed satisfied. This cannot be extended across the board to every independent naturalisation of a child. The article “Children: naturalisation alongside a parent or an independent application” describes the details and other routes.

Together with you, we compile both partners' civil-status and identity documents and evidence of residence, family life and finances. We clearly assign language and educational evidence to each person. For foreign documents, the required translation and any further questions of authenticity or recognition should be clarified early.

To complete preparation, we answer three questions with you:

• Independent entitlement: Who meets the requirements independently?

• Residence-period concession: Who needs to be naturalised alongside a partner?

• Connection between procedures: How will the necessary connection be maintained until the decision?

The answers determine whether two independent applications, an express application for naturalisation alongside a partner or different timing is appropriate. The overview of naturalisation as a family brings the partner and child procedures together again.

For cost planning, the following applies: under § 38 StAG, the standard naturalisation fee of 255 euros per person also applies to an adult partner being naturalised alongside the other. The reduced amount of 51 euros applies only to minor children naturalised alongside a parent who have no income of their own within the meaning of income tax law. A family procedure handled jointly therefore does not mean a single flat fee for the family. A possible reduction on equitable grounds is a separate matter.