{"id":1271,"date":"2012-05-03T08:11:55","date_gmt":"2012-05-03T08:11:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/rechtsanwaltsblog\/?p=1271"},"modified":"2025-12-08T15:23:00","modified_gmt":"2025-12-08T15:23:00","slug":"auslanderrecht-informationen-uber-eingestellte-ermittlungsverfahren-konnen-der-einburgerung-entgegenstehen","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/immigration-law-information-about-discontinued-criminal-investigations-can-be-an-obstacle-to-naturalization\/","title":{"rendered":"Immigration Law: Information about discontinued criminal investigations can be an obstacle to naturalization."},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>Federal Administrative Court, March 20, 2012, Case No.: 5 C 1.11<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The acquisition of German citizenship is regulated by the Nationality Act (StAG).<\/p>\n<p>According to Section 3 of the German Nationality Act, German citizenship can be acquired by birth (\u00a7 4 StAG), by declaration under \u00a7 5 StAG, by adoption as a child (\u00a7 6 StAG), by issuance of a certificate pursuant to \u00a7 15 Paragraph 1 or 2 of the Federal Expellees Act (\u00a7 7), by transfer as a German without German citizenship within the meaning of Article 116 Paragraph 1 of the Basic Law (\u00a7 40a), or for a foreigner by naturalization (\u00a7\u00a7 8 to 16, 40b, and 40c).<\/p>\n<p>Regarding the naturalization of a foreigner, a distinction is made between entitlement to naturalization and discretionary naturalization.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"1_Anspruchseinburgerung\"><\/span>Entitlement to Naturalization<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>A foreigner is entitled to naturalization if they:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Have legally resided in Germany for five years,<\/li>\n<li>acknowledges the liberal democratic order of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany,<\/li>\n<li>Possess a permanent right of residence or a residence permit at the time of naturalization,<\/li>\n<li>Can support themselves and their dependents without relying on benefits under SGB II or XII, or are not at fault for requiring such benefits,<\/li>\n<li>Have not been convicted of a criminal offense,<\/li>\n<li>Have sufficient German language skills, and<\/li>\n<li>Possess knowledge of the legal and social order and living conditions in Germany.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"2_Ermessenseinburgerung\"><\/span>Discretionary Naturalization<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Even if the above requirements are not fully met, authorities can grant discretionary naturalization if there is a public interest in the foreigner\u2019s naturalization and certain minimum requirements are fulfilled:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The foreigner or their legal guardian submits an application.<\/li>\n<li>The foreigner has legally resided in Germany.<\/li>\n<li>The foreigner has not been convicted of a criminal offense.<\/li>\n<li>The foreigner has a residence or other accommodation.<\/li>\n<li>The foreigner can generally support themselves and their dependents through their own employment or assets.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>According to \u00a7 11 StAG, naturalization is excluded if there are actual indications that the foreigner is pursuing or has pursued activities that are against the free democratic basic order, the existence or security of the federal or a state government, or are aimed at unlawful interference with the functions of the constitutional organs of the federal or state governments, or which, by the use of violence or preparations for such, endanger the foreign interests of the Federal Republic of Germany, unless the foreigner credibly demonstrates that they have renounced the pursuit or support of such activities.<\/p>\n<p>In the aforementioned ruling, the Federal Administrative Court had to decide whether, in the context of a naturalization process, the behavior of a foreigner that was the subject of a discontinued criminal investigation could be considered.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Sachverhalt_des_gerichtlichen_Verfahrens\"><\/span><strong>Facts of the Case: <\/strong><span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Turkischer_Klager_lebte_seit_20_Jahren_in_Deutschland\"><\/span>Turkish plaintiff had lived in Germany for 20 years<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The plaintiff was a Turkish citizen of Kurdish ethnicity who had lived in Germany for over twenty years.<\/p>\n<p>In the spring of 1989, the Federal Prosecutor\u2019s Office initiated an investigation against the plaintiff on suspicion of supporting a terrorist organization.<\/p>\n<p>During this investigation, the plaintiff was accused of falsifying passports for the Kurdistan Workers\u2018 Party (PKK), which is classified as a terrorist organization, between 1988 and February 1994.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Nach_Verdacht_auf_terroristische_Aktivitaten_stellt_die_Anwaltschaft_das_Verfahren_ein\"><\/span>Prosecution Discontinues Case after Suspected Terrorist Activities<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>In August 1994, the Federal Prosecutor\u2019s Office discontinued the case due to minor culpability.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, the City of Cologne rejected the plaintiff\u2019s application for naturalization submitted in July 1997, arguing that the plaintiff was an active high-ranking member of the PKK.<\/p>\n<p>The lawsuit and appeal against this decision by the City of Cologne were unsuccessful.<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Verwaltungsgericht_und_Oberverwaltungsgericht_weisen_Klage_gegen_den_ablehnenden_Einburgerungsbescheid_ab\"><\/span>Administrative Court and Higher Administrative Court Dismiss Lawsuit Against the Rejection of Naturalization<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The Higher Administrative Court ruled that naturalization was excluded by law (\u00a7 11 Sentence 1 No. 1 Alt. 1 and 3 StAG) because the plaintiff had supported extremist activities through his actions.<\/p>\n<p>Furthermore, he had not credibly demonstrated that he had renounced his previous support for the PKK.<\/p>\n<p>The court also found that the prohibition on considering the case, as stated in the Federal Central Register Act (\u00a7 51 Paragraph 1 BZRG), did not prevent the consideration of the earlier behavior in the naturalization process.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Entscheidung_des_Bundesverwaltungsgerichts\"><\/span>Federal Administrative Court\u2019s Decision:<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>The Federal Administrative Court also agreed with the Higher Administrative Court\u2019s view and dismissed the plaintiff\u2019s appeal.<\/p>\n<p>Although the broad prohibition on consideration under the Federal Central Register Act (\u00a7 51 Paragraph 1 BZRG) generally applies when deciding on a naturalization application, an exception to this prohibition is only permitted in cases expressly regulated in the Federal Central Register Act (in particular \u00a7 52 Paragraph 1 No. 1 BZRG).<\/p>\n<p>However, the prohibition on consideration applies only to offenses for which the foreigner has been criminally convicted, which was not the case here.<\/p>\n<p>Thus, the discontinuation of the investigation does not prevent the underlying act from being considered in the naturalization process.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Source:<\/strong> Source: Federal Administrative CourtSource: Federal Administrative Court<\/p>\n<p><strong>Important Note: The content of this article has been prepared to the best of our knowledge and belief. However, due to the complexity and constant evolution of the subject matter, we must exclude liability and warranty.<\/strong> Important Note: The content of this article has been prepared to the best of our knowledge and understanding. However, the complexity and constant change in the subject matter make it necessary to exclude liability and guarantees.<\/p>\n<p>If you need legal advice, please feel free to call us at <a href=\"tel:022180187670\">0221 - 80187670<\/a> or send us an e-mail to <a href=\"mailto:info@mth-partner.de\" rel=\"noopener\">info@mth-partner.de<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mth-partner.de\/en\/services\/immigration-law\/\">Lawyers in Cologne advise and represent you in immigration law.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Anyone wishing to find out more about naturalisation procedures should know that every <strong data-start=\"431\" data-end=\"455\">Naturalisation authority<\/strong>such as the <strong data-start=\"470\" data-end=\"502\">Leipzig Naturalisation Office<\/strong>similar legal principles are observed. Here, too, checks are carried out to determine whether discontinued investigation proceedings or previous suspicions speak against naturalisation. Timely legal advice helps to prepare the documents in full and avoid misunderstandings when submitting the application.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div id=\"gtx-trans\" style=\"position: absolute; left: 411px; top: 2520.56px;\">\n<div class=\"gtx-trans-icon\"><\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Naturalisation is associated with a number of civic rights and obligations for the naturalisation applicant. However, the privileges of German citizenship are considerable, so that the examination as to whether an applicant is entitled to obtain citizenship is also very strict.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11619,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3660],"tags":[804,1457,2535],"class_list":["post-1271","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-einbuergerung","tag-ermessenseinburgerung-rechtsanwalt","tag-rechtsanwalt-koeln-einbuergerung","tag-rechtsanwalt-koeln-aufenthaltsrecht"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Ausl\u00e4nderrecht: Informationen \u00fcber eingestellte Ermittlungsverfahren k\u00f6nnen der Einb\u00fcrgerung entgegenstehen.<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Selbst eingestellte strafrechtliche 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