Living in Germany: Modernising citizenship laws, snow and a strong beer festival

How reducing citizenship hurdles will shape German society 

We’ve known for some time that the German government is pushing through a reform of the citizenship law, which will include allowing dual citizenship and reducing the amount of time people have to wait to become naturalised. But it was only when we at The Local were able to read the draft legislation in full that it became even clearer how important the government believes these changes are for society. 

They pointed to the roughly 10.7 million people with a foreign passport living in Germany at the end of 2021. Of this number, around 5.7 million had been in Germany for at least 10 years. The government outlined in the draft law that this is a big problem because it shows there is still a significant proportion of the population who are an integral part of German society but do not have equal rights. The coalition, which is made up of the Social Democrats, Greens and Free Democrats said the current citizenship law “needs to be modernised in order to adequately take into account the needs of many people with an immigration history”. 

Summing it up, the opening paragraph of the draft legislation says that "there is an interest on the part of society as a whole that as many migrants as possible who meet the legal requirements apply for naturalisation in order to play an active role in shaping social coexistence". The draft legislation is being viewed by the government at the moment before it is presented to the Bundestag. 

Tweet of the week

Something doesn’t feel right about the flavours on this Schnitzel plate.

I defend German food *all the time* and then a mate sends me a picture like this and I don't know why I bother. pic.twitter.com/5exNP5Uq7r

— Rosa Deluxemburg (@BReguided) March 10, 2023

Where is this?

Photo: DPA/ Jens Büttner

Winter came back with a vengeance this week to Germany. But it can be a chance to get out and enjoy winter sports. Here, a family plays with a sledge in the garden of Schwerin Castle in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.

Did you know?

Germany loves beer - that’s a non-debatable fact. But did you know that Munich takes it one step further with a strong beer festival - or Starkbierfest? This event traditionally takes place between the carnival celebration called Fasching in some German regions and Lent, and has been celebrated by breweries in the Bavarian capital since the 15th century.

For three weeks, the beer halls and breweries throughout the city flow with stronger varieties of beer – both in terms of alcohol and nutritional content. The tradition goes back to a time when monks brewed strong, nourishing beers to help them survive the weeks of lasting during Lent. The main events will take place at Paulaner am Nockherberg, but you’ll find plenty of strong-beer-related festivities throughout the city, especially at the Löwenbräukeller and the Augustiner Keller. It takes place from March 10th to April 2nd. But please drink responsibly!