Incoming German government to raise residence period for citizenship eligibility to 5 years

German conservatives under Friedrich Merz reached a coalition agreement with the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) on April 9, which will see the implementation of tougher migration policies and raise the required years of residence before eligibility for German citizenship.

The agreement includes measures aimed at reducing illegal migration, such as rejecting asylum seekers at the borders, allowing deportations to Syria, and suspending family reunifications, Caliber.Az reports citing German media.

The "coalition contract" between the two ruling parties also proposes extending the required residence period for citizenship eligibility from 3 to 5 years.

Additionally, the coalition plans to suspend family reunifications for individuals with subsidiary protection status for two years and to end all federal refugee admission programs, with no new programs planned for the future.

While Germany faces persistent labour shortages and relies on legal migration, recent high-profile migrant crimes and a lack of oversight in migration agencies—partly due to the growing number of migrant cases—have led to widespread frustration among the population regarding migration policies.

By Nazrin Sadigova