Access to citizenship & its impact on immigrant integration (ACIT) Results for Germany

1. Access to citizenship & its impact on immigrant integration (ACIT) Results for Germany 22 January 2012 Prof. Dr. Gerard-René de Groot University of Maastricht Jasper Dag Tjaden Migration Policy Group Co-financed by the European Fund for the Integration of Third-Country Nationals

2. Access to citizenship & its impact on • immigrant integration (ACIT) • http://eudo-citizenship.eu End date: 31/03/2013 • Goal: Researchers & policy actors better understand how law, implementation, and other • factors affect citizenship acquisition and how citizenship affects integration processes; • Goal: Policymakers & civil society use evidence to design more effective laws and measures • Consolidate law indicators • Pilot implementation indicators • Expand ‘outcome’ indicators • Assess determinants of naturalisation across EU • Assess citizenship impact on integration process • 10 national citizenship dialogues and national handbooks • EU conclusions, recommendations, dialogue, module

3. Citizenship Law Indicators(CITLAW) • 57 indicators compare specific aspects of citizenship regimes across countries and time • basic indicators (e.g. Ius Soli for second generation) • several combined indicators (e.g. Ius Soli at birth) • six combined indicators: iussanguinis, ius soli, ordinary naturalisation, special naturalisation, renunciation, withdrawal • Indicators measure strength of the purpose or principle of the citizenship law • Indicator scores range from 0 to 1 0 = purpose/principle not represented 1 = purpose/principle strongly represented

4. Summary of Findings

5. Ordinary Naturalisation

6. Ordinary Naturalisation opportunities • residence requirement: • Belgium 1.00 • Germany 0.71 • EU-15 0.61 • Switzerland 0.12 obstacles • Economic resources required • Dual nationality restricted • High-level written language test • Use of test for civic knowledge

7. Special Naturalisation (selected modes)

8. Special Naturalisation obstacles • child extension • no socialisation-based access for foreign-born children • stateless persons opportunities • spousal transfer • adoption • descendants of former citizens • good faith citizens • refugees

9. Citizenship Implementation Indicators (CITIMP) • 38 indicators compare formal aspects of naturalisation procedure. These include all stages, from efforts by public authorities to inform applicants to the options to appeal a negative decision. • 5 dimensions covered administrative procedure: • Promotion: how much do authorities encourage applicants to apply? • Documentation: how easily can applicants prove they meet the conditions? • Discretion: how much room do authorities have to interpret conditions? • Bureaucracy: how easy is it for authorities to come to a decision? • Review: how strong is judicial oversight of the procedure?

10. Summary of Findings Generally, positive link between law (CITLAW) & implementation (CITIMP) In contrast, DE has more legal obstacles to naturalise than most EU15, but fewer procedural obstacles in federal standards and selected laender

11. DE naturalisation procedures more like FR than any other EU country • Some state promotion (widest variation in selected laender) • Some demanding documentation as in other EU15 countries • Limited discretion within procedure • Some bureaucratic elements (variation between selected laender) • Relatively strong judicial review

12. Promotion Opportunities • Campaigns, pilots/materials, ceremonies in Hamburg & a few cities • Free federal language and integration courses • Exemptions to high fees ‘Missed’ opportunities— • Required citizenship ceremonies involving public authorities & media • Naturalisation campaigns, also targeting attitudes of general public • Cooperate more in the process with immigrant NGOs • Legal obstacles may make promotional activities much less effective

13. Documentation Opportunities: • Test exemptions for those completing various forms of schooling in Germany • Authorities obtain information themselves on criminal record • Test exemptions generally on vulnerability grounds (e.g. age, illiteracy, illness) Obstacles: • Few exemptions on test or economic resources for refugees or stateless persons • Additional paperwork from country of origin (translated and certified) • Renunciation fully enforced (requirement is symbolic oath in Spain or United States)

14. Citizenship acquisition (CITACQ) • Acquisition indicators compare rates of citizenship acquisition among foreign-born in their country of residence • Percentages of foreign-born immigrants who have acquired citizenship at any point in time, not naturalisation rates measuring the number of new naturalisations divided by resident population with foreign citizenship • Information based on European Labour Force Survey Ad Hoc Module (2008) that targets immigrants and their descendants, aged 15-67 • Data exclusively on foreign-born (1st generation) and allows for comparisons of citizenship acquisition rates across 25 European countries

15. Citizenship acquisition (CITACQ) Includes information on the following indicators for citizenship acquisition by foreign-born: • ALL • SEX (female vs. male) • ORIGIN (EU vs. non-EU countries) • AGE AT MIGRATION (age at which respondent took up residence) • YEARS OF RESIDENCE (years of residence) • YEARS OF RESIDENCE (minimum number of years of residence) • TIME UNTIL NATURALISATION (numbers of years until naturalisation)

16. Summary of Findings • On average around 34% of foreign-born persons are a citizen of their EU-15 country of residence. • Citizenship acquisition rates in EU-15 range are lowest in Luxembourg (10%) and highest in Sweden (67%). In Germany acquisition rate (43%) is slightly above average. • Immigrants from non-EU countries (42%) more often acquire citizenship than those from EU countries (20%). • On average it takes around 10 years for foreign-born persons to acquire citizenship of their country of residence, within EU-15 countries. • In Luxembourg it takes almost 15 years on average to naturalise, whereas in Ireland this is around 5 years. In Germany the speed (9,5 years) is around the EU15 average.

17. Acquisition rates in EU-15 (+CH, NO) Germany

18. Speed of naturalisation GERMANY

19. Germany compared I(% foreign-born with citizenship)

20. Germany compared II(% foreign-born with citizenship)

21. Analysis of acquisition rates Citizenship acquisition & speed of acquisition are mainly driven by: • Socio-economic development of countries of origin • Citizenship laws of the country (see following graph) Variation in acquisition rates is mainly explained by: • Marital status (married people are more likely to be naturalised) • Socio-economic status (employed immigrants are more likely) • Gender (female immigrants are more likely) • Use of native language at home (immigrants who speak the language of the destination country at home are more likely)

22. Predicted probability of having destination country citizenship by MIPEX Access to Nationality (by years of residence in country) Germany (50) Germany (50) MIPEX Access to Nationality score (adjusted for first generation only)

23. Citizenship and Integration (CITINT) • 18 core indicators measure the the extent to which changes in citizenship status affect levels of integration. • Three categories of indicators: • Labour force participation (2008 Eurostat LFS ad hoc module) • Social inclusion and standard of living (2008 EU-SILC) • Host society attitudes (ESS rounds 1-5) • Sample: EU-27, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland • As expected, immigrants who naturalised are often better off than immigrants who have not naturalised.

24. CITINT: Labour Force Participation Source: 2008 EU Labour Force Survey Ad Hoc Module

25. Labour Force Participation Source: 2008 EU Labour Force Survey Ad Hoc Module

26. Social Exclusion Source: 2008 EU-SILC Survey

27. Living Conditions Source: 2008 EU-SILC Survey

28. Conclusions Major legal opportunities • Residence requirement • Ius soli Major legal obstacles • Restrictions on dual nationality • Economic resource requirement • No socialisation-based entitlement Major administrative opportunities • Limited discretion• Promotion measures in laender• Judicial review Major administrative obstacles • Documentation required abroad • Test exemptions for refugees/stateless • Settled immigrants from developing countries are more likely to naturalise, but policies have major impact on naturalisation rates • Naturalised German citizens took on average 9,5 years to naturalise • Still around half of the foreign-born population has not naturalised, even after 15 or 20 years in Germany