What You Need To Know Before Opening An Article 116 Application
Posted on: 11 January 2022
Germany has taken steps over the years to send reparations to people deprived of German citizenship due to racial, political, or religious factors before and during World War II. One of the steps has been Article 116, a law allowing those people and their direct descendants to regain German citizenship. These applications are not that easy and not something you should undertake alone. You really need the help of an immigration lawyer who specializes in Article 116 cases. Before opening an application, however, make sure you understand how that lawyer can help you.
Processing Times and Continuation of Applications
Processing times for these passports can be long, and the pandemic hasn't helped. While typical processing times for Article 116 applications are supposed to be only a few weeks to a few months, they can stretch out. Always check what the current state of the application wait is like and whether the law office will continue to work with applications it's submitted if processing times become very long. With continued lockdowns, you never know what can happen.
Specific Success Rates for Those Covered by 2020 and 2021 Additions
Article 116 requirements have been loosened over the past few years, allowing more people to apply to have citizenship restored or granted. The biggest changes came in 2020 and 2021 when a number of restrictions on which parent was German and which citizenships people had taken were revoked. While these changes are still fairly new, ask about the success rate the lawyer has had in getting applications for these newly included people approved. If the applications are still in process, you can still ask about success rates in general. Someone with an excellent success rate overall will likely be a good choice if you're applying due to the changes in the law.
Company Connections in Germany
What happens on the German end? Does this lawyer have a sister office in Germany, or at least a contract with another legal office there to help move the applications along once they're submitted on the U.S. side? It is a big help to have German lawyers assisting your application in the country.
You'll need patience, but with good legal help, you'll eventually be able to get that German passport if you meet current qualifications. Article 116 has enabled many former German families to regain passports to their ancestral country, and you too can be among those families.
For more information, contact an Article 116 lawyer near you.
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