Germany is set to register a record number of naturalizations in 2025, driven by citizenship reforms.

Germany granted citizenship to 332,500 people in 2025, a record high according to data published by the Federal Statistical Office. This figure represents a 14% increase compared to the previous year and confirms a strong upward trend in naturalizations in the country.

Among new citizens, Syrian nationals remain the largest group for the fifth consecutive year. Approximately one in five people naturalized in 2025 will be from Syria. However, their total number has decreased by 21% compared to 2024, a phenomenon that authorities attribute to the maturation of the waves of refugees who arrived in 2015 and 2016.

Syria has been a significant source of naturalization applicants in recent years, particularly after the civil war that displaced millions. Many refugees who arrived a decade ago are now eligible for German citizenship.

Behind the Syrians, the main naturalized groups are nationals of Turkey and Russia, as well as smaller but rapidly growing communities such as Bosnians, Albanians and American citizens.

This overall increase is also linked to a reform that came into effect in 2024, which reduced the required residency period for applying for citizenship from eight to five years. It also authorized dual citizenship, thus simplifying the process for many foreign residents.

Finally, naturalizations based on restitution laws — allowing descendants of people deprived of citizenship under the Nazi regime to regain it — have also increased sharply.

These developments show a more flexible migration and integration policy, in a context where Germany seeks to compensate for its demographic aging and its labor needs.