Section 5 declaration for historic sex discrimination

Check who may use Germany's section 5 declaration, which birth date matters, what the declaration changes, and the 19 August 2031 deadline.

Can section 5 correct an old family-line problem?

Short answer: it may correct a defined sex-discrimination case.

Section 5 is not a general maternal-line program. It is not a determination of citizenship already held. It is also separate from restitution for Nazi persecution.

A qualifying person acquires German citizenship by making a declaration. The German word is Erklärung.

Which birth date starts the review?

The affected child must have been born from 24 May 1949.

The Basic Law was promulgated on 23 May 1949 and entered into force at the end of that day. So a birth on 23 May is outside section 5. A birth on 24 May is within the time period, subject to the other requirements.

For an earlier birth, read the sections 13 and 14 guide. Do not force a pre-1949 case into section 5.

Which cases can section 5 cover?

Section 5 of the Nationality Act identifies four classes.

A child who did not acquire through a German parent

This includes defined cases where an old sex-discriminatory rule blocked citizenship at birth.

Common examples are:

• a child born within marriage before 1 January 1975 to a German mother and foreign father, or
• a child born outside marriage before 1 July 1993 to a German father and foreign mother, subject to legally effective paternity and timing.

These are examples, not the complete legal test.

A child whose mother lost German citizenship by marriage

This class concerns a mother who lost German citizenship by marrying a foreigner before the child's birth under the law then in force.

The marriage date, the mother's citizenship, the spouse's citizenship, and statelessness consequences all need review.

A child who lost citizenship through legitimation

Historic legitimation could change a child's legal family status. Section 5 includes the defined class who acquired German citizenship at birth but lost it through a foreigner's legitimation effective under German law.

Do not confuse two different dates. Loss through foreign legitimation ended on 31 December 1974. Acquisition through legitimation by a German father continued through 30 June 1998.

Descendants of the affected children

Descendants of the first three classes can also declare if they meet the requirements.

There is no simple fixed generation count in the section. But every legal parent-child link still needs proof.

What is the deadline?

The declaration must reach the competent authority by 19 August 2031.

Do not treat a postmark as the final test. For an applicant living abroad, the Federal Office of Administration (BVA) treats receipt by the authority as decisive. A competent German mission can receive and forward the declaration.

Keep proof of delivery and the complete submitted packet.

Does eligibility mean citizenship existed from birth?

No.

Section 5 is an acquisition by declaration. When the requirements are met, citizenship is acquired through receipt of the qualifying declaration.

This matters for children.

A child born after a parent acquires German citizenship may be able to acquire at birth under section 4, subject to the foreign-birth rule. An already-born child does not automatically become German because the parent later declares.

That already-born child may have a separate descendant entitlement. Include each living person as a separate applicant or represented declarant where required.

Who may be excluded from section 5?

Some people cannot use this declaration route. The exclusions can include:

• a person who later held German citizenship and then gave it up, lost it, or disclaimed it,
• a descendant born or adopted only after that giving-up, loss, or disclaimer, and
• a person who could have acquired citizenship through the section 4(4) birth-registration route but did not, or who can still use that route.

The law does not add a general “voluntary” qualifier to every listed loss. Serious criminal and security exclusions can also apply, and the paternity rules still matter.

The exact chronology decides whether an exclusion applies. If the person once held a German passport, citizenship certificate, or naturalization document, first identify when and how that status existed and ended.

Which forms and records matter?

The BVA currently uses the EER declaration form, an EER annex, and ancestor annex AV. Use the live BVA section 5 forms page.

You normally need records showing:

• the declarant's identity,
• the full legal descent chain,
• the ancestor's German citizenship,
• the affected birth and marriage status,
• any marriage loss or legitimation,
• legally effective paternity and its timing, and
• the criminal-history material requested by the current packet.

The procedure is generally fee-free. You may still pay for records, certification, apostilles, translations, and professional help.

What should you do next?

Identify the first child affected by the old rule. Write down that child's exact birth date, the parents' citizenship, marriage status, and legal parentage.

Then work forward through every descendant and plan for receipt before 19 August 2031.