Many South Africans are investigating the possibility of emigration. One of the biggest hurdless to overcome is to obtain the right to enter and to live in their country of choice. This obviously becomes much easier if they are entitled to citizenship of the country they wish to live in, or of certain other countries whose citizens are more readily accepted in the world, such as the member states of the European Union, and in particular, Germany.
Many South Africans have German ancestry and may be entitled to a German passport without even being aware of their rights: if you have German ancestors who came to South Africa without giving up their German citizenship, you may have inherited their German nationality. Until about a century ago there were certain conditions attached to this, however, modern German citizenship law follows the principle that the child of a German is a German.
Until very recently, a child inherited the citizenship of his or her German father only if the parents were married to each other. If not, the child received the citizenship of the mother. In keeping with modern worldwide trends German citizenship laws were changed in August 2021, and discrimination on the basis of gender was abolished. German citizenship may now be derived from either parent, irrespective of their marital status. There is, however, a limited time within which to take advantage of this right and claim German citizenship.
At ’Leistner Attorneys’ we specialise in assisting portential applicants for German citizenship with establishing whether they have a right to claim German citizenship, or whether they are entitled to be naturalized as Germans. If a person qualifies, we assist with obtaining the required certificates and then prepare the application for submission to the local German Consulate.
’Leistner Attorneys’ is a German speaking South African law firm that has helped numerous South Africas to obtain their German passports over many years. We have extensive experience in application for citizenship with the German authorities.
The first step is to investigate our client’s background and ancestry based on information received from the client.
Who were the German ancestors and when did they come to South Africa? Is there any reason to suspect that they were naturalised as South African citizens? In many instances, the first generation to be born in this country already thought of themselves as South Africans and never bothered to relinquish their German nationality. This means their German nationality may have perpetuated through the generations without today’s offspring knowing of their right to claim
German citizenship.
Once it has been established that there is a direct German lineage and therefore a chance to prove the right to German nationality, the relevant documentation has to be vetted. All documentation relating to the client’s German ancestry has to be examined and in as far as some birth or marriage certificates may no longer be available, they will have to be retrieved from archives in Germanny. This is very often possible, but may involve lengthy correspondence with the German archives or local authorities.
’Leistner Attorneys’ offers a comprehensive service: Our initial vetting of your background and German ancestry will establish whether the possibility exists of proving your right to German citizenship. In the event that our examination has a positive outcome, we will engage with you on an individual basis regarding further requirements to be met, and we will provide clarity on the costs involved in securing your German passport.
Address:
Equestria Shopping Center, Suite 21B
Cnr. Simon Vermooten & Furrow Road
Equestria, Pretoria
Phone:
012 807 3915
E-mail:
manuela@leistnerattorneys.co.za
