Marriage to a German

Question

Hello.
I intend to marry the father of my baby who is a German citizen but has resided in the UK the last one year. My baby is a German citizen and I have recently gotten a three years resident permit. I and my baby reside in Germany.

1. Since I reside here, can we get married in Germany having all the requirements ready without any possibility of asking I have my documents verified from my home country?
If they ask me to, how long does it take for verification?

2. Alternatively we can marry in Denmark, do you know how long to legalise such marriage in Germany afterwards?

3. My intention is to move with him to the UK, in that case do I still qualify to have a naturalisation to become a German citizen after living with him as my husband in the UK for three years?

4. If we have other children in the UK or outside Germany, will they automatically get the German nationality?

Thank you in anticipation.

Answer 1

Hello @Missy

Nice to hear from you again!

1) It depends on your home country if verification is necessary or not. If you tell me, I can try to find out more about the procedure in your specific case.

Apart from that: If you have all the required documents and fulfil all the criteria you can get married in Germany.

2) You don’t really need to legalize your marriage in Germany if it’s been performed in Denmark. German authorities usually accept marriages that took place abroad as long as they happened in accordance with the law of said country.

Since your (future) husband is German, he can get a certificate to validate/register your marriage at a German registry office though. But this is not mandatory.

Source (German language): https://***.auswaertiges-amt.de/de/newsroom/buergerservice-des-auswaertigen-amts/faq/04-heirat-ausl---gueltigkeit-in-d/606266

3) You can apply for the German citizenship after 6 years (!) of staying in Germany (the time you spend in the asylum procedure also counts into these years). The law explicitly says that you have to reside in Germany (of course you can travel in the meanwhile), but you have to live here for the majority of the time.

Source (German language): https://***.gesetze-im-internet.de/rustag/__10.html

4) If you are married and get a child abroad: Yes. Since your husband is German, your children will be Germans too.

If you are not married (yet), he has to do the so-called "Vaterschaftsanerkennung" (acknowledgement of paternity) at Jugendamt. He can already do this before the child is born. After this first step your child can get the German citizenship.

Source (German language): ****://***.china.diplo.de/contentblob/3485502/Daten/3817836/mbgeburtinchina131216dd.pdf

Best regards,
Thorgen

Comments

Thank you for your candid answers.

Though there is a point where I am still not clear. About getting German citizenship I am familiar with the requirements while residing in Germany.
I am asking if I now live in the UK with a German husband, is there any way I can obtain his German nationality? Assuming we validate our marriage in Germany before I relocate.

Thanks.

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Hello @Missy - I tried to answer that with what I wrote under point 3). As far as I can see it's not possible to get the German citizenship without having lived here for at least 6 years. I assume that authorities want you to live in Germany in order to integrate into society which is not possible when you are in the UK. Becoming a citizen of another country is an act with far-reaching implications. That’s why there is high hurdles to overcome before.

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Thanks a lot.
I quite appreciate.
Good work you doing, God bless.

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Thank you :)