German Citizenship by Descent in Canada

German nationality law follows descent, not the place of birth. A child born in Toronto or Calgary to a German parent can be German and Canadian from birth. Becoming Canadian by birth does not cost the German citizenship, because nobody applied for the Canadian one.

Which parent could pass on citizenship depends on the rules at the time of each birth:

• Born in wedlock between January 1, 1914 and December 31, 1974: through the German father. Through the German mother only from 1964, and only if the child would otherwise have had no citizenship.
• Born in wedlock since January 1, 1975: through either German parent.
• Born out of wedlock: through the German mother since 1914, through the German father since July 1, 1993, if paternity was established under German law.

Every generation between your German ancestor and you has to pass this test. A single break in the line ends the chain for everyone born after it. The most common breaks in Canadian families are an early emigration before 1904, a naturalization before the next child was born, and the old rule that German mothers married to non-Germans could not pass on citizenship before 1975.

Read more about each situation in our guides on great-grandparents, children born out of wedlock and ancestors naturalized in Canada or the US.

Canadian citizenship as a status of its own only exists since January 1, 1947, when the Canadian Citizenship Act came into force. Before that date, immigrants who naturalized in Canada became British subjects under the Naturalization Act, 1914. Those who held a naturalization certificate and had not lost that status became Canadian citizens on January 1, 1947.

For the German side of your family history, the relevant date is the original naturalization, not 1947. Under the German nationality law in force until 1999, a German living abroad lost German citizenship when acquiring a foreign citizenship on application. Naturalization as a British subject in Canada was such an application. A naturalization certificate from 1925 can therefore decide whether a child born in 1930 was still born German.

Many families only know that grandfather “became Canadian” at some point. The exact date can usually be found:

• Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) holds most citizenship and naturalization records from 1854 onwards.
• Library and Archives Canada has indexed the naturalization lists for 1915 to 1951 by name. They were published in the annual reports of the Secretary of State and, from April 1932 to April 1951, in the Canada Gazette. The lists show the certificate number, which you need to order the file from IRCC.

Until the end of 1913, the nationality law of 1870 applied. A German who left the country and lived abroad for ten years without interruption lost German citizenship. The loss extended to his wife and to minor children living with him. The ten years could only be interrupted by registering with a German consulate.

For families who arrived in Canada before 1904, the line often ended long before anyone naturalized. Whether an ancestor registered with a consulate is rarely known in the family, so this point should be checked before anything else.

Until June 26, 2024, a German who became a Canadian citizen on their own application generally lost German citizenship, unless the German authorities had approved keeping German citizenship beforehand. Until the end of 1999, this applied to Germans without a residence in Germany. Since June 27, 2024, Germany accepts dual citizenship and the loss no longer occurs. The change does not work backwards.

For descendants the order of events matters:

• A child born before the parent’s naturalization had already acquired German citizenship at birth and generally kept it.
• A child born after the naturalization could not receive German citizenship from that parent.
• Whether a minor child who was included in a parent’s naturalization lost German citizenship as well depends on the circumstances of that naturalization and has to be checked individually.

If you lost German citizenship yourself when you became Canadian, you can apply to be naturalized again as a former German under Section 13 StAG. This is a discretionary decision, so the application has to show your continuing ties to Germany.

Two old rules worked against women and their children:

• Until March 31, 1953, a German woman who married a non-German man generally lost her German citizenship.
• A child born in wedlock before 1975 to a German mother and a non-German father generally did not become German at birth.

Since August 20, 2021, people affected by these rules can acquire German citizenship by a simple declaration under Section 5 of the Nationality Act (StAG), if they were born after May 23, 1949. Their descendants can declare as well. The declaration has to reach the authorities by August 19, 2031. More on this route: German citizenship through your mother.

If an ancestor lost German citizenship through Nazi persecution between 1933 and 1945, a separate claim to restoration applies, without the restrictions above.

The certificate of German citizenship costs 51 euros. If the application is rejected, the fee is between 25 and 51 euros. You pay only when the BVA asks you to.

According to the BVA, a processing time of two years is not unusual, because applications are dealt with in the order they arrive. Incomplete files take longer. More on this in our article on how long German citizenship by descent takes and our document checklist.

Your family history deserves a careful look. Book your consultation today or call +1 587 349 3535.