Germany: Ten-Year Ban on Citizenship for Fake Language Certificates

 

Germany’s CDU/CSU bloc and the SPD plan to introduce a proposal in the Bundestag to tighten citizenship laws. Anyone caught submitting a falsified German language certificate would be barred from applying for citizenship for ten years.

The measure also applies retroactively: if fraud is discovered after citizenship has been granted, it can be revoked and the penalty imposed.

Alexander Throm, the CDU/CSU’s spokesperson for internal affairs, said the aim is to prevent deception in the naturalization process, stressing that German citizenship is “not an easy prize” and must be obtained legally.

Sources - Agencies