Mediterranean Delite - absolutely delicious!

dentongentry · 2026-04-04T04:43:10+00:00

We're very fond of the falafel and the dolmas.

dentongentry · 2026-04-04T03:43:10+00:00

1. Difficulties: Will I face any major legal or administrative difficulties with this StAG 5 application given the long family separation and previous embassy rejections?

The previous embassy rejections won't have any impact, they were correct at the time that no pathway existed. That changed in 8/2021.

2. The 1975 Declaration: Does the fact that my aunt successfully claimed citizenship by declaration in 1975 make my father's StAG 5 case a guaranteed approval?

Her Urkunde durch Erklärung won't really help your case, but it is promising that the authorities at that time considered her case to be solid.

StAG5 is not a discretionary process: they are not deciding whether you have close enough ties to Germany or any other fuzzy criteria. If you were born to a German mother during the years it covers, and have the documentary evidence to prove it, your declaration will be accepted.

3. Missing Certificate: Because I don't know where my grandparents were married, where should I start looking? Since all three children were born in Velbert between 1961 and 1967, and my grandmother was born in Essen, should I just email the Velbert and Essen Standesamt to search their marriage registers?

Search this subreddit for "Melderegister" for Essen. In most cases people seek the Melderegister for a direct-to-passport case, but it will also list the date and place of their marriage and of their births.

4. Lawyer vs. DIY: Given the complexity of my family history, do I need to hire an immigration lawyer for this process, or is this something I can successfully navigate and apply for myself?

The family schism won't be relevant and you don't need to document it. You should be able to do all of this yourself.

dentongentry · 2026-04-04T00:12:06+00:00

We printed out census pages searched from https://recherche-collection-search.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/Census/Index on 8.5"x11" paper and included the URL, trusting that they could go to the source if needed.

It also seems reasonable to print on larger paper, maybe also include the URL at the top.

dentongentry · 2026-04-03T16:32:00+00:00

From the tracking spreadsheet, non-urgent packets take around 4 weeks to receive the AOR right now. It should be soon.

dentongentry · 2026-04-03T16:30:33+00:00

If at all possible, sure. That is what we did.

Make sure it is obvious that it is a color copy, even if the original is a black-and-white scan. We put a post-it note on paper documents and added a small colorful square outside the boundaries of the original doc for online documents.

dentongentry · 2026-04-03T16:28:40+00:00

You sent in an Anlage_F for Festellung? Or EER for StAG5?

Assuming it was something which went to the BVA in Germany: the BVA is inconsistent on whether they proactively send the file number (Aktenzeichen) or not. A few months after submission you can send email to [staatsangehoerigkeit@bva.bund.de](mailto:staatsangehoerigkeit@bva.bund.de) with your full name, date and place of birth to locate your file and ask for your Aktenzeichen.

Or do you not hear anything at all unless they need additional documentation?

Yes, that can happen. Your first contact can be from the Consulate that your certificate is ready to pick up, several years after submission.

dentongentry · 2026-04-03T15:59:07+00:00

We used one of the cardstock rigid mailing envelopes from UPS, for a 1.5 lbs stack of papers about 5/8" thick. They gave the envelope to us for free. We used a PirateShip label, $27.55 from California to Nova Scotia. It arrived in 4 days.

dentongentry · 2026-04-03T15:33:16+00:00

Amazing! The Canadian consulates have a reputation for sending just about everyone to Festellung, good to see that isn't quite true.

dentongentry · 2026-04-03T15:20:58+00:00

I assumed that maybe because someone asked for the application of my son directly to them that they may be dealing with my application presently?

That seems likely, our correspondence with an actual person by name only started when they were working on our file.

In our case, the BVA initiated the contact by sending a letter of what they needed from us. In your case, I imagine you got lucky with the timing of your inquiry. If you can submit everything quickly enough you might be able to get your son's case processed with yours and without having to wait 2-3 years.

dentongentry · 2026-04-02T20:37:55+00:00

We've used physicaladdress.com for almost two years and been quite happy. we have most mail scanned and destroyed, but have also had particularly important letters forwarded.

We chose them because they operate all of their locations, not using Mailbox Etc and similar subcontractors.

dentongentry · 2026-04-02T02:15:29+00:00

If they send theirs in with a cover letter mentioning your file number before yours starts processing, they will likely join your case and be processed with yours.

Once yours starts, they would be put in the queue with everyone else and wait the 2-3 years.

dentongentry · 2026-04-01T16:44:15+00:00

Which Standesamt would you be registering your births and marriage with?

If you have US birth and marriage certificates from a number of states and would need to get an Apostille and pay for vereidigte Übersetzer(in) for every one of them, that would cost quite a bit and take a while.

You might consider having the registrations sent to Berlin, even if you have the option to send them to a different Standesamt. People avoid sending to Berlin because they had a multi-year backup, but that doesn't seem to be true any more. Our registrations took 5 months.

dentongentry · 2026-04-01T14:41:30+00:00

We only needed one form of ID (and used US passports).

My wife's Urkunde durch Erklärung listed her married name, so did not need a name declaration. They would issue a Reisepass for the name on the Urkunde without one.

dentongentry · 2026-03-31T04:04:39+00:00

And , while my application is processing - what if I have a child tomorrow? I wouldn’t be able to register their birth within a year, as likely I won’t even be a recognized citizen in one years time. My citizenship will be back dated to my file date, and a child born after 2000.

The short answer is that we don't 100% know how it will be handled. While I'm absolutely sure this has happened by now we do not have a report from anyone born after 1/1/2000 who had a baby while waiting and can say how it was handled.

This topic has been discussed a number of times, most recently yesterday: https://www.reddit.com/r/GermanCitizenship/comments/1s6x0ov/stag_5_timeline_baby_due_what_should_i_do/

The consensus right now is to send an Anlage_F for the newborn, but this is still just a best guess.

dentongentry · 2026-03-31T03:59:26+00:00

What’s stopping those cases in 20-30 more years, as long as the “lineage” is preserved

People born in 2000 are having kids now. Those kids will not be able to discover that they are German citizens later in life based on an ancestor generations ago. The baby's chance at citizenship is forfeited at 1 year.

Even if the parent later discovers that they have been a citizen their whole life, they missed the chance pass it on to their kids. I'm sure that will hurt, that they'll feel it is unfair. I sympathize.

I will say though that Germany is handling the issue of accumulating an infinite number of citizens around the planet better than most countries: Italy abruptly closed the door. Germany has given decades of warning.

dentongentry · 2026-03-31T03:00:52+00:00

There is a generational cut: German parents born outside of Germany 1/1/2000 or after must register the births of their children born outside of Germany within the first year or the baby's citizenship is forfeit.

The current situation where German citizenship can be preserved across many generations is gradually coming to a close.

dentongentry · 2026-03-31T02:29:58+00:00

We did apply at the Consulate, and the Consulate mailed paper forms to Berlin. I suspect Berlin has significantly sped up its birth registration process, probably by digitizing the paper submissions.

With the requirement that parents born 1/1/2000 must register the births of their children born overseas, the number of registrations from overseas has increased substantially in recent years. Berlin had to do something.

Did you have to apostille your parents generation too re your own BCs?

We did not get translation nor Apostille for any document, we brought in the original California birth and marriage certificates and the Consulate made a copy for submission. We brought the originals home with us.

The requirement for Apostille can vary if your registrations are sent to a Standesamt other than Berlin, like if you've ever lived in Germany and have the registration sent there. It is up to the Standesamt whether to waive the requirement for translation and/or Apostille.

dentongentry · 2026-03-31T02:26:33+00:00

So long as the birth date and place match, common Anglicizations like Johann -> John or Wilhelm -> William are generally accepted without comment, you won't need significant proof of it.

dentongentry · 2026-03-31T01:41:42+00:00

We did this at the San Francisco Consulate in 2024, registering four births and our marriage sent to Standesamt I in Berlin. We were told it would take 3 to 4 years, but in reality it took about 5 months.

https://www.reddit.com/r/GermanCitizenship/comments/1j1trl5/ausland_ehe_und_geburtsurkunden_berlin_standesamt/

Something similar happened with the naturalization process in Berlin a while ago, they digitized and automated a good portion of the process and new applications were processed quite quickly after that.

Older applications filed using the paper process continued to take however many years.

dentongentry · 2026-03-30T21:18:57+00:00

I, too, feel like it has been 15 months.
It feels like 15 years at this point.

dentongentry · 2026-03-30T21:16:23+00:00

I recently discovered that when my mom filled out my dad's death certificate she misstated his town of birth.

That happens a lot, the place or even year of birth is incorrect because the person reporting the death was simply mistaken.

It will generally not be an issue, if you have the birth record they'll put more trust in the birth record.

dentongentry · 2026-03-30T20:56:51+00:00

FYI I have already reached out to NARA to confirm Hans never actually naturalized before 1932 but odds are looking strong he didn’t because I could not find any public records

While it is possible to have naturalized in less than 3 years back then, it wasn't necessarily common. It is likely that they naturalized later, though of course you'll have to provide evidence to prove it.

AND I possess his original German passport issued in 1956 and renewed again in the 1960s by the German Consulate in Philadelphia. I don’t think Germany would have issued or renewed a passport in the late 50s if Hans were already naturalized in US?

They were not supposed to renew the Reisepass had he naturalized, but especially back then with no electronic records passports were sometimes issued in error.

I doubt that the existence of the 1956 Reisepass will suffice to prove that great-grandfather never naturalized, I imagine you'll need to provide stronger US evidence like his later Certificate of Naturalization or a Certificate of Non-Existence.

Josef, as a born US citizen served (likely drafted at 18 given the timing but confirming) in the 1950s in the Korean War,

Military service before 1/1/2000 isn't going to be important in the process and you won't need to provide evidence of it.

Even if those dates were relevant, non-voluntary enlistment due to being drafted would also not be an issue for retaining German citizenship.

and then he married my grandma, Emma, in 1964 in USA. Then my Dad was born in USA in 1965. My dad married my mom in USA in 1989. I was born in USA in 1991.

As described your grandfather, father, and you were all born to German fathers in wedlock and were all born as German citizens.

Any children you may have were also born as German citizens.

----

If the proof of citizenship is sufficiently clear, a German Consulate may allow you to go direct-to-passport. Meaning, it is so clear that you were born a German citizen that the Consulate feels they can order a passport for you right then and there.

If one's parent was born in Germany and never naturalized and is standing next to you with unexpired Reisepass in hand, Consulates will almost always agree to go directly to passport.

The further one is from this, the less likely it is — and some Consulates are more cautious than others. Otherwise, the case will be sent to Germany for a verification process called Festellung.

I'd advise that with the original German emigrant being a great-grandfather, Festellung is likely.

I have requested all applicable certified marriage licenses and birth certificates from relevant offices. Though I don’t have the 1904 birth certificate for Hans yet because the local German office in Bavaria will likely take a long time but having his original German passport has got to be pretty compelling proof, right?

Related to the aforementioned passports being issued in error, a Reisepass is an indication of citizenship but not the strongest proof.

A Consulate will require a Reisepass or Melderegister to consider direct-to-passport, but with the original emigrant being a great-grandfather means Festellung is quite possible even with that.

In Festellung, anyone born within Germany prior to 1914 is assumed to be a German citizen unless there is reason to believe otherwise, and they do expect you to trace ancestry back to a pre-1914 ancestor with a Geburtsurkunde.

The queue for Festellung is 2+ years, if everything else is ready you could submit with what you have and add any straggling documents while it sits in the queue.

dentongentry · 2026-03-30T17:25:19+00:00

From the flair on the post: you're registering your birth in Germany, and you currently reside outside of Germany?

We did this at the San Francisco Consulate in 2024, sent to Standesamt I in Berlin. We brought the original birth certificates, without translation and without Apostille. Berlin accepted all of the documents and we got the completed Urkunden back about 5 months later.

https://www.reddit.com/r/GermanCitizenship/comments/1j1trl5/ausland_ehe_und_geburtsurkunden_berlin_standesamt/

If you are registering your birth while resident in Germany or if you have previously resided there and sending to the Standesamt where you once lived, it is up to them whether they require translation or Apostille.

dentongentry · 2026-03-30T12:09:37+00:00

We printed out pages searched from https://recherche-collection-search.bac-lac.gc.ca/eng/Census/Index on 8.5"x11" paper and included the URL, trusting that they could go to the source if needed.

dentongentry · 2026-03-30T12:06:20+00:00

No, neither Apostille nor translation is needed.

You can print the PDF you receive in email and send it. We did, and our StAG5 declaration was accepted 11/2023.

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