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The number of Turkish nationals who became German citizens in 2024 more than doubled compared to the previous year, according to new data from Germany’s Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). A total of 22,525 Turkish citizens were naturalized in 2024, marking a 110% increase from 2023, when the number stood at 10,735.
This rise represents the highest absolute increase among all national groups acquiring German citizenship last year.
Germany saw a total of 291,955 foreign nationals become German citizens in 2024. The overall increase of 46% year-over-year marked the largest annual gain since citizenship statistics began in 2000.
Syrian nationals topped the list with 83,150 naturalizations, followed by Turkish citizens in second place. Iraqis (13,545) and Russians (12,980) followed closely behind.
Destatis highlighted the impact of the new citizenship law, enacted on June 27, 2024 by the former coalition of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), the Greens, and the Free Democratic Party (FDP).
The reform shortened the required residency period for citizenship from eight to five years. For individuals demonstrating exceptional integration, this could be reduced to as little as three years.
However, after the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union (CDU/CSU) and SPD coalition took power in May 2025, the special three-year provision was scrapped.
A significant change in the law was the legalization of dual citizenship, allowing new German citizens to retain their original nationality. This was especially influential for many Turkish nationals, as previous restrictions had required them to renounce their Turkish citizenship.
On average, Turkish citizens had been living in Germany for 23.1 years before naturalisation, according to the data. In contrast, Syrians who became German citizens had spent an average of just seven years in the country.
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