Berlin’s immigration authority (LEA) processed 39,034 citizenship grants in 2025 – almost double the previous year and four times the 2023 figure – after centralising and digitising its workflows. The surge demonstrates how Germany’s biggest city is preparing for a national citizenship-law overhaul expected later this year.
Yet Interior State Secretary Christian Hochgrebe told the city parliament’s Interior Committee that 1,931 applications, or 4.9 percent, were rejected. Reasons ranged from forged language- or integration-test certificates to contradictory information about residence periods. All suspected forgeries are now automatically referred to prosecutors, he added.
![Berlin sets naturalisation record – but one in twenty applications still rejected]()
Since January 2024 responsibility for naturalisations has moved from over-stretched district offices to a purpose-built unit within the LEA. Staff numbers doubled and most steps – from fee payment to document upload – are now paper-less, enabling officials to claw back a backlog that was nearing 40,000 files two years ago.
For employers the record numbers matter because citizenship removes work-permit dependencies and frees staff for EU-wide business travel. Mobility managers are therefore being urged to review assignment timelines for long-term foreign staff who may become German nationals sooner than planned – and thus lose any tax equalisation tied to non-resident status.
Law firms nonetheless warn that the higher rejection rate shows authorities are scrutinising files more rigorously. Companies that reimburse naturalisation costs should budget for extra due-diligence on documents such as language certificates and criminal-record extracts to avoid wasted fees.
Yet Interior State Secretary Christian Hochgrebe told the city parliament’s Interior Committee that 1,931 applications, or 4.9 percent, were rejected. Reasons ranged from forged language- or integration-test certificates to contradictory information about residence periods. All suspected forgeries are now automatically referred to prosecutors, he added.
Since January 2024 responsibility for naturalisations has moved from over-stretched district offices to a purpose-built unit within the LEA. Staff numbers doubled and most steps – from fee payment to document upload – are now paper-less, enabling officials to claw back a backlog that was nearing 40,000 files two years ago.
For employers the record numbers matter because citizenship removes work-permit dependencies and frees staff for EU-wide business travel. Mobility managers are therefore being urged to review assignment timelines for long-term foreign staff who may become German nationals sooner than planned – and thus lose any tax equalisation tied to non-resident status.
Law firms nonetheless warn that the higher rejection rate shows authorities are scrutinising files more rigorously. Companies that reimburse naturalisation costs should budget for extra due-diligence on documents such as language certificates and criminal-record extracts to avoid wasted fees.
Source: The Local Germany
