European citizenship

Germany

German citizenship by descent

German citizenship through ancestry is generally passed down from your parents. It does not skip a generation – you cannot receive German citizenship from your grandparents if your parent is not German.

You can automatically become a German citizen in the following situations:

• Birth to married parents
• Birth to unmarried parents
• Adoption
• Restoration
• Marriage (with conditions and prior to 1970)

Birth to married parents

If you were born before 1 January 1975 to parents who were married, you could only become German if your father was a German citizen. If you were born after 1 January 1975, you can become German if one of your parents are German.

Birth to unmarried parents

Children born at any point after 1 January 1914 to a German mother were granted citizenship. Children born after 1 July 1993 to either a German father or a German mother are German citizens.

German citizenship by restoration

If your parents or ancestors lost or were denied their German citizenship due to persecution or gender discrimination, they may be able to reclaim it under the new German nationality laws introduced in August 2021.

If you or your ancestor are eligible for German citizenship by declaration, there is a ten-year deadline from the date the law was introduced. The latest you can declare your German citizenship is 19 August 2031. This makes it possible for children born in wedlock before 1 January 1975 to a German mother and a foreign father to apply for German citizenship now.

This applies to their descendants as well, who can now apply for citizenship through their maternal line.

Adoption

If you were legally adopted in Germany, you may have become a German citizen depending on the dates and circumstances surrounding your birth:

German citizenship by marriage

You will need to have been married for at least two years and have lived in Germany for a minimum of three years before you qualify for German citizenship through marriage.

Germany dual citizenship

Dual citizenship for Germany is only allowed under certain circumstances, including:

• If the other citizenship is from another EU country
• If permission is granted from the German government
• If renunciation of previous citizenship after German naturalisation is extremely difficult
• If a child acquires German and another citizenship at birth

This area of German nationality law requires assessment on a case-by-case basis.

Italy

Italian citizenship by descent

If you were born outside Italy but have an Italian ancestor, you may have a claim to Italian citizenship.

Italian citizenship is granted through the paternal line with no limit on generations. If claiming citizenship from the maternal line, you must have been born after 1 January 1948. Claims based on the maternal line prior to 1 January 1948 require legal representation.

Italian citizenship by marriage

You can claim Italian citizenship through marriage after living in Italy for two years with your spouse or living abroad with your spouse for three years. If you have children together, the time is reduced by half.

To claim Italian citizenship from your spouse through naturalisation, you must be able to speak Italian at a level B1 or higher (according to the EU Common Language Framework).

Lithuania

Lithuanian citizenship by descent

The following situation will allow you to claim Lithuanian citizenship by descent:

• If at least one of your parents, grandparents or great grandparents were citizens when the country was the Republic of Lithuania (between 1918 and 1940).
• If your relative left Lithuania before Lithuanian independence was restored (11 March, 1990).
• If your relative left Lithuania to a country that was not part of the former Soviet Union.*

*If your relative went to a Soviet Union country, you may be eligible for single or dual Lithuanian citizenship depending on their circumstances.

Citizenship law amendments, as of 1 July 2016, allow you to be eligible for dual Lithuanian citizenship from descendants that left before 1940. Previously, you were only eligible for single Lithuanian citizenship, which meant renouncing any current citizenship.

Lithuanian citizenship by marriage

You may be granted Lithuanian citizenship through marriage after seven years of permanent residence with your Lithuanian spouse.

Netherlands

Dutch citizenship by birth

Dutch citizenship by marriage

You may apply for Dutch citizenship if you have been living with your Dutch spouse for three consecutive years either in the Netherlands or outside the Netherlands.

Portugal

Portuguese citizenship by descent

Portuguese citizenship by marriage

You can gain Portuguese citizenship through marriage after three years of marriage to a Portuguese citizen or three years of legally recognised cohabitation. There’s no residency requirement, although you need to prove a connection to the Portuguese community.

If you later divorce, your citizenship is not revoked.

Ireland

Born in Ireland

If you were born in Ireland before 1 January 2005, you are entitled to Irish citizenship.

Born to an Irish parent

If you were born to an Irish citizen (either a mother or father) who was Irish at the time of your birth, then you will have a claim to Irish nationality, irrespective of where you (or they) were born.

If you register as an Irish citizen in this manner, then any children born after such registration will have a claim to Irish nationality. It is therefore possible to pass on Irish nationality to children indefinitely, as long as they are registered before the birth of the next generation.

Irish citizenship by descent

If your grandparent was born in Ireland or Northern Ireland, then you have a claim to Irish nationality, irrespective of where you were born.

Northern Ireland is included because it is treated as being part of the Republic of Ireland for Irish nationality purposes.

Dual citizenship

If you’re a citizen of countries such as Ireland, Australia, New Zealand (to name a few), you will have the right to dual citizenship. It becomes a little more complex with countries such as South Africa, Kenya, Zimbabwe and the UK because there are some strict rules that need to be followed.

It’s important to always consult an expert when applying for a new nationality. If you’d like to find out if you’re eligible for dual citizenship, get in touch with our nationality experts.