Number of New German Citizens Hits 20-Year High as Many Syrians Naturalized

Germany saw a 28% increase in the number of people gaining its citizenship last year, with people from Syria accounting for more than a quarter of those who were naturalized, official data showed Tuesday.

Preliminary figures show that about 168,500 people were granted German citizenship in 2022, the Federal Statistical Office said. That was the highest number since 2002.

Of those, 48,300 — or 29% — were Syrian citizens. That was more than double the previous year’s figure and seven times as high as in 2020, as increasing numbers of people who migrated to Germany between 2014 and 2016 fulfill the requirements for citizenship.

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Turkish citizens were the second-biggest group of people gaining German citizenship last year — 14,200 of them, a 16% increase compared to 2021, and with an average of more than 24 years living in Germany.

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Germany’s socially liberal government plans to ease the rules for obtaining citizenship, reducing to five years from eight the number of years people are supposed to live in the country before gaining a German passport. People with “special integration accomplishments” would be eligible after three years.

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